TRT1: Dying to Know the Truth
by Kips34
Summary: TWILIGHT READING TWILIGHT #1 - It is the day after Bella's 18th Birthday, and Edward has just decided that he is going to leave her for her own protection. However, when a mysterious gift is left on the front porch at the Cullen's home, will he change his mind? Will old enemies be able to set aside their differences and change their collective futures for the better?
1. Chapter 1

**Reading Twilight:**

 **Summary:** It is the day after Bella's 18th Birthday, and Edward has just decided that he is going to leave her for her own protection. However, when a mysterious gift is left on the front porch at the Cullen's home, will he change his mind? When cryptic letters lead the growing pack of werewolves, including those who haven't yet phased, along with the tribe elders to join the Cullens at their home, how will they react to what they hear?

 **Chapter 1: Letters and Preface**

Bella was surprised to hear Charlie downstairs in the kitchen when she awoke on Saturday. She had thought he was going fishing with Billy today, and hadn't expected him to still be here. She wandered down the stairs, curious.

"Dad?" she asked, growing worried when she found him sitting at the table with a letter in his hand, looking distressed, "What's that? Is something wrong?"

"You tell me Bells," he replied gruffly, handing her the letter.

 ** _Isabella and Charlie Swan,_**

 ** _You don't know me, and it is better that way, but I have come to care about the both of you, and cannot bear to see you suffer needlessly. So I am writing to you to warn you of things to come, things which, if not averted, might threaten to tear you apart._**

 ** _The Cullens will be receiving a set of books this morning with more information. Charlie, if you care about your daughter's future, please go there today, and do not leave until you have heard everything. Bella, if you value your sanity, go, and let them see the truth. You will understand what I mean when you arrive._**

 ** _S.M._**

"I have no idea what this is supposed to mean," Bella said, not entirely lying. She had a sinking feeling she knew what this mystery person meant by 'the truth', but she wasn't about to tell Charlie that. "Should we go over to the Cullens and talk to them?"

"Yes," he answered immediately, "I want to know what the hell is going on, now."

Jacob was getting ready to leave for school. He was really growing tired of high school, but at least the reservation didn't seem to pile on too much homework.

He walked into the kitchen, and stopped surprised. Billy was sitting in his wheelchair, staring pensively at what looked like a letter. He wondered who that could be from? Maybe Rachel?

But it wasn't the letter that gave him pause; it was the expression of almost fear that was quickly becoming etched on his father's face.

"Dad?" he asked, worried, "Is everything ok?"

"I don't know son," he replied, handing Jacob the letter and rolling to the phone in the kitchen.

 ** _William and Jacob Black,_**

 ** _Someone you both care for very deeply has gotten themselves involved with dangerous forces which might pose a danger to her. Isabella Swan's relationship with the Cullens has brought her into a world she did not know existed, and as a result, her fate has been greatly altered. There is wonder ahead for her, but also great pain and suffering._**

 ** _Jacob, If you wish to spare her horrible heartache, you will go to the Cullens' home today. You will be joined by the Cullen family, Bella, and her father Charlie, who have all received similar messages. I also suggest you call the other elders, and Sam's pack._**

 ** _Billy, there is much for you to learn in the coming days, about yourselves, Bella, the Cullens, and what the future holds for all of you, but I beseech you, do not act until you have heard all that I have laid out for you. The future is not all bleak and hopeless. There is much for you to look forward to as well, if you allow yourself to be open to it._**

 ** _S.M._**

As he finished reading the letter, he heard his father speaking to Sam on the phone. He wondered what SM meant by Sam's pack, and what the Uley kid had to do with all of this?

"So," he began uncertainly, "We're going to the Cullen's place? No school today?"

"Yeah."

The Cullens were sitting in their living room, listening to Alice babble excitedly about her plans for the coming weekend when she suddenly stopped talking abruptly, her eyes far away, lost in a vision.

"Alice, what is it?" Jasper asked, feeling her confusion and uncertainty.

"I'm not sure," she responded, "I saw a letter, and books, and then everything just disappeared. I don't know."

"Odd," Edward mused, "Perhaps someone simply changed their mind abruptly, ending the vision?"

"I don't know," Alice repeated, and then suddenly rushed to the front door, wrenching it open, revealing a stack of books with a letter on top.

"What does it say?" Esme asked.

Emmett snatched it up and read it aloud for the family:

 ** _Carlisle, Esme, Edward, Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper, and Alice,_**

 ** _These books are a depiction of the thoughts and experiences of Bella Swan. Edward, I know you have always secretly desired to know how she truly thinks, and this is your chance, but I must warn you, not everything you read will be to your liking._**

 ** _I have a gift, similar in many ways to Alice's. The first book is an insight into everything Bella has experienced over the last year or so, but much of the second book, and all of the third and fourth books are events in her life that have yet to transpire. I am showing you a glimpse into her future as it stands today. I pray, that given what you will learn over the next few days, you change that which causes you all so much pain._**

 ** _I have sent letters to Bella, Charlie, Jacob, and Billy, and I have instructed Billy to call the pack, and the elders. I know you would prefer them not to be in your home for obvious reasons, but this is about their lives and their families as surely as it is about yours, so they have every right to read what I have written here. They are already on their way._**

 ** _Secrets are going to come to light, and you need to trust that that is for the best. Do not try to stop them from being a part of this, and do not act in response to anything you read until you are finished with all four books._**

 ** _S.M._**

"That does not sound good, at all," Jasper spoke softly, no doubt feeling all of our unrest.

"Someone's coming," Edward noted as the sound of several vehicles coming up the drive registered with everyone.


	2. Chapter 2 Preface

**Chapter 2: Arrivals and Preface**

Bella and Charlie were the first ones through the front door, not even pausing to knock first. Bella looked worried, and Charlie looked almost angry. All of the Cullens were suddenly wondering what their letter had said to get that sort of reaction, and as if reading their minds, Bella produced the letter and handed it to Carlisle. He read it and passed it around to the rest of the family.

As they silently took in the new information, and desperately tried to figure out what was going on, the other "guests" arrived.

Billy and Jacob had similar expressions to Bella and her father, but also stayed quiet.

The other tribe elders, Harry and Sue Clearwater and Old Quil Atera, looked wary as they entered the Cullen's home for the first time. None of them spoke, but Harry maintained a protective posture in front of his wife the entire time, and all of them looked as if they would have preferred not to be there.

The pack entered then. Sam, the current alpha, and his imprint, Emily were at the head of the group, taking up a similar posture to that of the Clearwaters. Behind them were the others wolves, Paul and Jared, and Jared's imprint, Kim.

The Cullens had not known that the pack was again phasing, but it became abundantly clear the moment that they entered the house. If their defensive behavior hadn't given them away, their distinct smell would have.

"Alright," Carlisle broke the uncomfortable silence, "My family was told to expect you all, and it appears everyone is here. We do not know exactly what to expect, as we do not know who has sent us this or why, but we received a letter this morning. I trust you all did as well?" Everyone nodded silently, so he continued, "We also received a set of four books. They are titled Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. All we know is that they are supposedly told from Bella's point of view."

Bella felt the need to speak then, "I do not know who wrote them or why, or even how. And I don't know what they hope to see happen by bringing us all here together today, but obviously someone out there knows more than they should about all of us, and I for one want to know what is going on. Can we all agree to put aside our differences, and read through these together? And not act on anything we hear until we have finished all four and have a complete picture of what is going on?"

Everyone was still uncomfortable, especially the wolves, but she sounded reasonable, and they all nodded at her words.

"Yes," Sam spoke with authority, clearly having decided for the pack and the tribe members, "We will hear what they have to say. If this is truly some sort of warning, we wish to know everything we can. We will not act until we are all finished."

Bella smiled at this, and turned to Carlisle, "Can we bring some chairs into the living room so everyone is comfortable, and begin?" she asked kindly, and he nodded.

Once everyone was settled in, Sam picked up the first book, and began reading in a strong, even voice.

 ** _PREFACE_**

 ** _I'd never given much thought to how I would die - though I'd had reason enough in the last few months - but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this._**

"This is from Bella's point of view?" Charlie was suddenly nervous, hearing what was supposed to be his daughter's voice, calmly describing her own death.

"It's ok Charlie," Bella soothed him, "The first book is about past events. And I'm still here, so don't worry."

"You know what this is about, don't you?" Sam asked her, concerned that she was so calm, so unbothered by talking about her death, or at least a near-death experience.

"Yes," she answered, "But I think it will make a lot more sense if you just read."

 ** _I stared without breathing across the long room, into the dark eyes of the hunter, and he looked pleasantly back at me._**

The wolves exchanged a worried glance, clearly trying to decipher if this 'hunter' was in fact a vampire, and if so, if it was one of the Cullens.

 ** _Surely it was a good way to die, in the place of someone else, someone I loved. Noble, even. That ought to count for something._**

Billy was suddenly livid. He was convinced that the person threatening Bella was one of the Cullens, and so he now believed they had also threatened Charlie, the only person he could think of that Bella loved here in Forks.

Edward suppressed a hiss at Billy's angry mental accusations, and Jasper fought the growing tension and anger in the room. He sent out waves of calm, but he knew this was going to be a very long endeavor if the rest of these books were this dark and dangerous. And since it was Bella, the danger magnet, they likely would be.

He just hoped the hunter she was describing wasn't him on her birthday…

 ** _I knew that if I'd never gone to Forks, I wouldn't be facing death now. But, terrified as I was, I couldn't bring myself to regret the decision. When life offers you a dream so far beyond any of your expectations, it's not reasonable to grieve when it comes to an end._**

Edward thought that sentiment mirrored his own thinking now, and was surprised to hear it coming from Bella. He was willing to leave Bella, and their future together in order to protect her from his world, himself, and his family. And it was only bearable because he thought the same way that she apparently did.

 ** _The hunter smiled in a friendly way as he sauntered forward to kill me._**

"That's the end of the preface," Sam said, trying to remain calm as he pondered what Bella must have faced if this was really a first-hand account of her past, "Who would like to read next?"

"I will," Billy said, and Sam handed him the book.


	3. Chapter 3 First Sight Part 1

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 3: First Sight Part 1**

Billy held the book as if it were a grenade and he had just pulled the pin. After hearing Sam read the preface, where Bella so calmly discussed her own untimely death, he was almost afraid to begin the first chapter.

But after just a moment's pause, and two deep breaths, he began, his voice soft, but sure.

 ** _FIRST SIGHT_**

 ** _My mother drove me to the airport with the windows rolled down. It was seventy-five degrees in Phoenix, the sky a perfect, cloudless blue. I was wearing my favorite shirt - sleeveless, white eyelet lace; I was wearing it as a farewell gesture. My carry-on item was a parka._**

"So the story begins with the day you came to Forks then?" Charlie asked his daughter, still clearly shaken by the implications of the previous section. He would never say anything aloud since everyone else seemed so comfortable with the books, but he was also completely unnerved by the concept of someone seeing into Bella's mind, as well as the future. The whole situation had him on edge. None of it made any sense to him at all.

"Yes, I suppose so," she answered him quietly, "After all, moving to Forks was the real moment that everything in my life shifted, so it makes sense from an author's perspective." She was truly curious as to who SM was and what insight they might have into her life and her future.

She also desperately wanted to skip over all of the things that she had already experienced, especially since she knew hearing about some of this would certainly hurt her father and friends from the reservation.

She thought nothing of her reply, and the Cullens understood completely what she meant, but it seemed incredibly cryptic, and almost sinister to everyone else in the room, only adding to the ever-growing tension in the group.

Jasper sent out another large wave of calm in hopes of preventing a confrontation, and he silently prayed that this chapter would be light and add some humor to the situation.

"Go on Billy," Bella urged when the silence began to drag on.

 ** _In the Olympic Peninsula of northwest Washington State, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds. It rains on this inconsequential town more than any other place in the United States of America._**

"Don't we know it," Jacob grumbled quietly.

 ** _It was from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that my mother escaped with me when I was only a few months old._**

Esme couldn't help feeling bad for Charlie upon hearing this. He had lost his wife and infant daughter, without any notice, and he hadn't gotten Bella back in any real capacity for sixteen years. As a woman who had lost her own child, though in a more permanent fashion, she felt for the young Police Chief.

Her pained expression and soft sigh did not go unnoticed by the wolves. They were confused at her reaction, as they were unable to fathom the idea that she might sympathize with a human, or even understand his love and pain.

 ** _It was in this town that I'd been compelled to spend a month every summer until I was fourteen. That was the year I finally put my foot down; these past three summers, my dad, Charlie, vacationed with me in California for two weeks instead._**

"I never realized how much you disliked coming here all those years," Charlie commented sadly.

"I was young, and unable to appreciate the time it allowed me with you," Bella replied with a sad smile, "I know better now. Forks has really grown on me." And no one missed that a tear slid down Charlie's cheek as he took in his daughter's words. Nor that she instinctively glanced at Edward when talking about her change of heart with regard to this town.

 ** _It was to Forks that I now exiled myself- an action that I took with great horror. I detested Forks. I loved Phoenix. I loved the sun and the blistering heat. I loved the vigorous, sprawling city._**

"I don't understand," Jacob interrupted, "If you hate it here, and you love it there, then why move?" He looked honestly confused, and no one could blame him. Her actions didn't make much sense given this new information, but the Cullens had heard this explanation before so they all smiled slightly, knowingly.

"Just stop interrupting your father Jake," Bella chastised him jokingly, "And you will find out. I'm sure I explain it all clearly eventually."

 ** _"Bella," my mom said to me - the last of a thousand times - before I got on the plane. "You don't have to do this."_**

 ** _My mom looks like me, except with short hair and laugh lines. I felt a spasm of panic as I stared at her wide, childlike eyes. How could I leave my loving, erratic, harebrained mother to fend for herself?_**

Billy paused thoughtfully for a moment. It seemed odd to him that Bella should be the one to take care of her mother, and not the other way around. And he wasn't alone in thinking this, but given what they had all seen of her behavior with Charlie since she arrived, they weren't altogether surprised.

 ** _Of course she had Phil now, so the bills would probably get paid, there would be food in the refrigerator, gas in her car, and someone to call when she got lost, but still..._**

"Did she really rely on you for all of that when you were living with her?" Jared asked, equal parts curious and irritated. It shouldn't have been her job to be the responsible one in the mother-daughter dynamic. It was hardly fair to Bella.

"Renee has a beautiful soul," Bella responded, smiling at some memory as it danced in her eyes, "She wasn't always the best mother in the world, but she has always been my best friend, and I don't begrudge her any of that. It's just the way things have always been with us."

"You should have had a chance to be a child though, without those sorts of responsibilities and pressures," Paul spoke for the first time, remembering his own troubled past. Her parents weren't nearly as bad as his had been, but he knew what it felt like to have to grow up too young, and he felt for this girl. Even if she was a leech-loving pale face…

"Continue Billy," Bella said softly, clearly not wanting to speak ill of her mother, and effectively ending the conversation.

 ** _"I want to go," I lied._**

"Ha! And she believed you?" Emmett asked incredulous, laughing loudly, "You're a horrible liar Bellsy. How did you ever convince her of that in the first place?"

Bella didn't respond, but threw a pillow at the bear of a man and glared daggers at him in mock anger. She wanted to be mad at him for interrupting again, and for making fun of her. But when he called her Bellsy, and teased her like that, it made her feel like he really was her big brother. So, her glare lasted all of ten seconds however before her resolve crumbled and she started laughing with him.

The rest of the Cullens joined in, and for a moment, the wolves couldn't help but think that they really looked like a normal, albeit dysfunctional, family. They were too dumbfounded to react in any way at all, and after a minute or so, the laughter died down and Billy cleared his throat loudly before beginning again where he left off.

 ** _I'd always been a bad liar, but I'd been saying this lie so frequently lately that it sounded almost convincing now._**

No one could help the chuckles that escaped that at hearing Bella admit, at least in the book, that she was in fact a bad liar, just as Emmett had said.

 ** _"Tell Charlie I said hi."_**

 ** _"I will."_**

 ** _"I'll see you soon," she insisted. "You can come home whenever you want -I'll come right back as soon as you need me."_**

 ** _But I could see the sacrifice in her eyes behind the promise._**

"So you really did uproot your entire life just to make your mom happy?" Charlie mused in a disheartened tone, clearly not expecting an answer. And with that, the joking mood evaporated as quickly as it had appeared.

The Cullens already knew Bella was too self-sacrificing for her own good. They couldn't help but wonder what Charlie's reaction would be to everything that happened with James in Phoenix if he reacted this much to her simply moving to Forks. He really was in for a lot of surprises today…

 ** _"Don't worry about me," I urged. "It'll be great. I love you, Mom."_**

 ** _She hugged me tightly for a minute, and then I got on the plane, and she was gone._**

 ** _It's a four-hour flight from Phoenix to Seattle, another hour in a small plane up to Port Angeles, and then an hour drive back down to Forks. Flying doesn't bother me; the hour in the car with Charlie, though, I was a little worried about._**

"Am I really that bad?" Charlie huffed, hurt.

"No, no, no," Bella assured him quickly, "That's not what I meant. Just wait. I actually remember having this little internal conversation. I know I explain. Just listen."

Jacob gave her an odd look when she described her "internal conversation", but no one else spoke.

 ** _Charlie had really been fairly nice about the whole thing. He seemed genuinely pleased that I was coming to live with him for the first time with any degree of permanence. He'd already gotten me registered for high school and was going to help me get a car._**

*cough* "Truck" *cough* Billy interrupted himself, and he and Jacob both laughed lightly before he continued. The pack looked a little lost, and Jacob couldn't help but feel good about being in the know for once when Uley and his little gang were not.

 ** _But it was sure to be awkward with Charlie. Neither of us was what anyone would call verbose, and I didn't know what there was to say regardless. I knew he was more than a little confused by my decision - like my mother before me, I hadn't made a secret of my distaste for Forks._**

"I was really lost when you said you wanted to come live with me," Charlie agreed.

"I think most of us still are confused about why she came to Forks," Paul added, and everyone nodded their agreement, looking to Bella for answers.

She gave none of course, simply clearing her throat loudly and staring at the book in Billy's hands pointedly. He sighed, giving up for the moment on trying to get her to explain, and began reading again.

 ** _When I landed in Port Angeles, it was raining. I didn't see it as an omen- just unavoidable. I'd already said my goodbyes to the sun._**

 ** _Charlie was waiting for me with the cruiser. This I was expecting, too. Charlie is Police Chief Swan to the good people of Forks. My primary motivation behind buying a car, despite the scarcity of my funds, was that I refused to be driven around town in a car with red and blue lights on top. Nothing slows down traffic like a cop._**

This earned hearty chuckles from many in the group. Vampires and werewolves didn't agree on almost anything… except a love of driving at insane speeds. Between their enhanced reflexes and the fact that they could run faster than the top speed on most vehicles it wasn't all that unexpected.

Of course, Charlie didn't know any of this, and looked more and more confused at the group's comments and reactions.

 ** _Charlie gave me an awkward, one-armed hug when I stumbled my way off the plane._**

 ** _"It's good to see you, Bells," he said, smiling as he automatically caught and steadied me._**

 ** _"You haven't changed much. How's Renée?"_**

 ** _"Mom's fine. It's good to see you, too, Dad." I wasn't allowed to call him Charlie to his face._**

"You call me Charlie behind my back then?" he asked jokingly, but he is actually a little hurt by the fact that she still doesn't think of him as Dad.

She chuckles to herself, choosing to ignore the hurt she can see in his eyes knowing he wouldn't want to call attention to it in front of everyone, but promising to reassure him later, and responds in the same jokingly offended tone he had.

"You can't really be upset, being as you apparently call me Isabella," she spoke her full name with a shudder, and for a moment the intensity of her mock glare flared somewhat, "behind my back with enough frequency to confuse the whole town."

Again, only the Cullens had the specific memories to draw on to understand what she was talking about, so they laughed and smiled down at her, while everyone else just looked confused.

 ** _I had only a few bags. Most of my Arizona clothes were too permeable for Washington. My mom and I had pooled our resources to supplement my winter wardrobe, but it was still scanty. It all fit easily into the trunk of the cruiser._**

Hearing this, even though she already knew it, immediately sent Alice into planning mode. She would have to take Bella shopping as soon as possible. The idea was thoroughly exciting for her, even though she knew without having to seek out a vision that Bella would be less than pleased, or cooperative for that matter.

Hearing his sister's planning and feeling her instant excitement through Jasper, Edward felt incredibly guilty. He still hadn't told them about his plan to remove them from Bella's life, and somehow Alice hadn't seen anything yet. He knew he was doing the right thing, but how could he tell his family that they had to leave their sister behind?

 ** _"I found a good car for you, really cheap," he announced when we were strapped in._**

 ** _"What kind of car?" I was suspicious of the way he said "good car for you" as opposed to_** **_just "good car."_**

 ** _"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy."_**

 ** _"Where did you find it?"_**

 ** _"Do you remember Billy Black down at La Push?" La Push is the tiny Indian reservation on the coast._**

 ** _"No."_**

"You didn't remember me?" Billy inquired, saddened that the girl he often thought of as another daughter hadn't even known who he was upon her return to Forks.

"My childhood memories of Forks were not altogether pleasant most of the time, and you were permanently associated with Ch-Dad's," catching herself before she could call her father Charlie in front of him and the others so soon after his reaction to it earlier (not that everyone in the room, including Charlie, didn't catch the almost slip), "fishing trips. And I didn't particularly enjoy fishing. It wasn't anything about you personally."

She was trying to be diplomatic about it, but she didn't really know Billy or Jacob all that well, and since he always seemed to be trying to interfere with her relationship with Edward, she didn't particularly like him now.

 ** _"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Charlie prompted._**

 ** _That would explain why I didn't remember him. I do a good job of blocking painful, unnecessary things from my memory._**

Bella breathed a sigh of relief that her thoughts from that moment worked to validate what she was saying. She thought in that moment she finally understood how the family always felt around Edward. She could censor what she said, but her private thoughts were on display here for everyone to hear. It made her very uncomfortable, and she had no doubt that at some point something she thought would be horribly embarrassing for her.

Jasper was watching her curiously as her relief flooded him, followed quickly by her sympathy, worry, and embarrassment. He was horribly curious to know what was going on inside her head at that moment, but couldn't say anything without revealing his ability to the room full of strangers.

 ** _"He's in a wheelchair now," Charlie continued when I didn't respond, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."_**

 ** _"What year is it?" I could see from his change of expression that this was the question he was hoping I wouldn't ask._**

Billy and Jacob both coughed to cover their chuckles, and Charlie's face grew red for a moment as he grumbled quietly under his breath, the only word loud enough for the humans to hear, "Interrogation".

 ** _"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine - it's only a few years old, really."_**

"Actually Jacob is the one who rebuilt the truck's engine," Billy informed Charlie, his voice laced with pride at his son's impressive skills as a mechanic.

"Really?" Charlie was a bit stunned, though Billy had sworn he had told him as much at some point.

Rosalie couldn't help but be a bit impressed with Jacob. He was human, male, and would likely become a werewolf in the near future, so she was hard-wired to hate him, but she had spent enough time under the hood of the truck to know what a great job Jacob had done getting the old rust-bucket running. She didn't voice her compliments, but she promised herself to give the young wolf boy a fair chance before judging him too harshly.

Jasper grew puzzled at the strange wave of awe, and kindness coming from his usually bitter younger sister, and made a note to ask her about it later.

 ** _I hoped he didn't think so little of me as to believe I would give up that easily. "When did he buy it?"_**

 ** _"He bought it in 1984, I think."_**

"1982 actually," Billy added helpfully, causing Bella and Jacob both to laugh quietly.

 ** _"Did he buy it new?"_**

 ** _"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties - or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted sheepishly._**

 ** _"Ch - Dad, I don't really know anything about cars. I wouldn't be able to fix it if anything went wrong, and I couldn't afford a mechanic..."_**

"That's what you've got me for Bella," Rosalie piped up. She had been understandably quiet throughout much of the morning, but she was starting to relax as the environment in the room grew lighter, no doubt in part thanks to Jasper, and she wanted to boast a little. "That truck may be an old geezer, but I know my way around an engine, even an old, rusted out 1950s one pieced together with spare parts."

Bella laughed at this and nodded her head in thanks, as Rose really had saved the truck quite a few times over the last year, but when she turned her head and saw the shocked expressions on the men in the room, she couldn't help it. She started laughing even harder, completely out of breath, and then, when she could breathe again, spoke up, defending both Rose and her truck, "Rose may look like a supermodel, but don't be fooled gentlemen. Our girl's a proper grease-monkey. She can fix anything, and she practically lives in the garage most of the time. But Rose, don't hate on the truck. It just has character."

"Ok Bella," Rose placated her, "The old, beat-up, rust bucket just has lots and lots and lots of character." She smiled then, and playfully hit Bella's shoulder. They looked very much like sisters then, an odd sight even to the Cullens, and everyone's eyes widened even further.

"Just keep reading Billy," Bella urged him.

 ** _"Really, Bella, the thing runs great. They don't build them like that anymore."_**

 ** _The thing, I thought to myself... it had possibilities - as a nickname, at the very least._**

 ** _"How cheap is cheap?" After all, that was the part I couldn't compromise on._**

 ** _"Well, honey, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift." Charlie peeked sideways at me with a hopeful expression._**

 ** _Wow. Free._**

And again the room erupted in laughter. They couldn't help it. No matter how much they wanted to be angry and suspicious of each other, and no matter how uncomfortable the situation should've been, listening to Bella's inner musings was making them all feel incredibly comfortable. Carlisle wondered silently if there might be something to that, the way that she always seemed to be able to diffuse the tension in the family, and now here, with the rest of them as well. A gift maybe?

Or Jasper was just projecting his own amusement to the rest of the room. No way to know for sure…

"She really did have your number didn't she Charlie?" Harry gave him a hard time.

"You have no idea," he responded good-naturedly, "It was like I was suddenly on the other side of the table in one of my interrogations. She never misses anything." He was laughing, having no idea just how right he was.

Edward's face grew serious as he took in all the thoughts in the room suddenly refocused to the fact that Bella was involved with a family of vampires, and some of the tension in the room returned.

And then she spoke, "What did you expect? Like father like daughter, right?" She was still laughing, not letting the sudden shift in the room ruin her good mood, "I guess I inherited those police instincts."

Charlie brightened at this, and somehow all the tension melted away again. Maybe Carlisle was on to something…

 ** _"You didn't need to do that, Dad. I was going to buy myself a car."_**

 ** _"I don't mind. I want you to be happy here." He was looking ahead at the road when he said this. Charlie wasn't comfortable with expressing his emotions out loud. I inherited that from him. So I was looking straight-ahead as I responded._**

 ** _"That's really nice, Dad. Thanks. I really appreciate it." No need to add that my being happy in Forks is an impossibility. He didn't need to suffer along with me. And I never looked a free truck in the mouth - or engine._**

 ** _"Well, now, you're welcome," he mumbled, embarrassed by my thanks._**

 ** _We exchanged a few more comments on the weather, which was wet, and that was pretty much it for Conversation. We stared out the windows in silence._**

 ** _It was beautiful, of course; I couldn't deny that. Everything was green: the trees, their trunks covered with moss, their branches hanging with a canopy of it, the ground covered with ferns. Even the air filtered down greenly through the leaves._**

 ** _It was too green - an alien planet._**

Billy paused again, looking at Bella oddly for a moment. The pack and the elders seemed equally perplexed by her description. In fact, Emily, who had barely ever left La Push in her life, was looking at her as if she had just grown three heads.

Bella felt incredibly uncomfortable, and wanted to say something, defend herself maybe. After all, she had lived most of her life in a dry, brown desert, so it was like being thrown into a whole new world. But she kept quiet and looked pointedly at Billy, trying to get him to start reading again.

They were still in the first chapter of the first book, and with all the interruptions, it would take weeks to get through all of them. And she wanted, no she needed, to know what was going on.

Finally, after a whole minute of awkward silence, Billy cleared his throat and looked back at the book.

 ** _Eventually we made it to Charlie's. He still lived in the small, two-bedroom house that he'd bought with my mother in the early days of their marriage. Those were the only kind of days their marriage had - the early ones. There, parked on the street in front of the house that never changed, was my new - well, new to me - truck. It was a faded red color, with big, rounded fenders and a bulbous cab. To my intense surprise, I loved it. I didn't know if it would run, but I could see myself in it. Plus, it was one of those solid iron affairs that never gets damaged -the kind you see at the scene of an accident, paint unscratched, surrounded by the pieces of the foreign car it had destroyed._**

"Perfect for you since you attract danger and chaos like a magnet," Emmett commented, poking his little sister playfully.

She responded by sticking her tongue out at him like a little kid.

"What?" he asked innocently, "It's true Belly-boo. You're our own personal danger magnet."

"Whatever Emmy," she responded, shaking her head at him.

They were both laughing, and it was clear that he hadn't thought anything of their side conversation, but its impact was instant.

Charlie was confused, again. He hated not being in the know, and it was abundantly clear to him that something was going on here that he didn't understand. What danger?

Jacob was equally confused, and kept shooting weird glances at Emmett. He had never expected the biggest of the supposedly dangerous Cullen men to be so friendly and playful with Bella.

The others also were surprised by this, taking note of the nickname and comfortable demeanor of them both, but it was the danger comment that had them reacting. The wolves slid back into more protective stances unconsciously as they seemed to remember they were surrounded by vampires.

Jasper sent out waves of calm and everyone settled down again before anyone commented on the change. He was having to do that a lot today…

 ** _"Wow, Dad, I love it! Thanks!" Now my horrific day tomorrow would be just that much less dreadful. I wouldn't be faced with the choice of either walking two miles in the rain to school or accepting a ride in the Chief's cruiser._**

 ** _"I'm glad you like it," Charlie said gruffly, embarrassed again._**

 ** _It took only one trip to get all my stuff upstairs. I got the west bedroom that faced out over the front yard. The room was familiar; it had belonged to me since I was born. The wooden floor, the light blue walls, the peaked ceiling, the yellowed lace curtains around the window -these were all a part of my childhood. The only changes Charlie had ever made were switching the crib for a bed and adding a desk as I grew. The desk now held a secondhand computer, with the phone line for the modem stapled along the floor to the nearest phone jack. This was a stipulation from my mother, so that we could stay in touch easily. The rocking chair from my baby days was still in the corner._**

 ** _There was only one small bathroom at the top of the stairs, which I would have to share with Charlie. I was trying not to dwell too much on that fact._**

"You weren't the only one kiddo," Charlie said, his face twisting up as he shuddered at the memory of feminine products in his bathroom for the first time. Light laughter was heard from several in the group as both Bella and Charlie turned bright red.

 ** _One of the best things about Charlie is he doesn't hover. He left me alone to unpack and get settled, a feat that would have been altogether impossible for my mother._**

 ** _It was nice to be alone, not to have to smile and look pleased; a relief to stare dejectedly out the window at the sheeting rain and let just a few tears escape. I wasn't in the mood to go on a real crying jag. I would save that for bedtime, when I would have to think about the coming morning._**

Bella could feel everyone in the room staring at her again. They still didn't really understand why she came to Forks, or why she stayed if she really hated it so much. They were confused, and they didn't like that she had been hurting. But she gave no answers to their questioning glances, knowing the book would eventually explain, and she didn't want to talk about it.

 ** _Forks High School had a frightening total of only three hundred and fifty-seven - now fifty-eight - students; there were more than seven hundred people in my junior class alone back home. All of the kids here had grown up together - their grandparents had been toddlers together._**

 ** _I would be the new girl from the big city, a curiosity, a freak. Maybe, if I looked like a girl from Phoenix should, I could work this to my advantage. But physically, I'd never fit in anywhere. I should be tan, sporty, blond - a volleyball player, or a cheerleader, perhaps - all the things that go with living in the valley of the sun._**

 ** _Instead, I was ivory-skinned, without even the excuse of blue eyes or red hair, despite the constant sunshine. I had always been slender, but soft somehow, obviously not an athlete; I didn't have the necessary hand-eye coordination to play sports without humiliating myself - and harming both myself and anyone else who stood too close._**

 ** _When I finished putting my clothes in the old pine dresser, I took my bag of bathroom necessities and went to the communal bathroom to clean myself up after the day of travel. I looked at my face in the mirror as I brushed through my tangled, damp hair. Maybe it was the light, but already I looked sallower, unhealthy. My skin could be pretty - it was very clear, almost translucent-looking- but it all depended on color. I had no color here._**

"Yeah, that first day you almost looked like a-" Emmett began unthinking of the others in the room, and was swatted by Rosalie before he could finish, obviously about to say 'vampire' in front of a bunch of unknowing humans and possibly volatile werewolves. That would have been very bad. "ghost" he finished lamely and no one said anything else before Billy began reading again.

 ** _Facing my pallid reflection in the mirror, I was forced to admit that I was lying to myself. It wasn't just physically that I'd never fit in. And if I couldn't find a niche in a school with three thousand people, what were my chances here?_**

 ** _I didn't relate well to people my age._**

'Yeah, I seem to prefer century old immortals' Bella thought, a small smile tugging at her lips.

 ** _Maybe the truth was that I didn't relate well to people, period._**

'At least not to humans' she again commented internally, suddenly very thankful that Edward could not hear her ongoing inner musings.

 ** _Even my mother, who I was closer to than anyone else on the planet, was never in harmony with me, never on exactly the same page. Sometimes I wondered if I was seeing the same things through my eyes that the rest of the world was seeing through theirs. Maybe there was a glitch in my brain._**

Edward chuckled at this, unable to stop himself. The wolves wouldn't understand why he found that funny since they didn't know about his gift, or her immunity to it, but a couple of them reacted to the words as well. They clearly thought there must be something wrong with her brain for her to willingly surround herself with bloodsuckers.

 ** _But the cause didn't matter. All that mattered was the effect. And tomorrow would be just the beginning._**

 ** _I didn't sleep well that night, even after I was done crying. The constant whooshing of the rain and wind across the roof wouldn't fade into the background. I pulled the faded old quilt over my head, and later added the pillow, too. But I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, when the rain finally settled into a quieter drizzle._**

 ** _Thick fog was all I could see out my window in the morning, and I could feel the claustrophobia creeping up on me. You could never see the sky here; it was like a cage._**

 ** _Breakfast with Charlie was a quiet event. He wished me good luck at school. I thanked him, knowing his hope was wasted. Good luck tended to avoid me._**

Again the chuckles of the Cullens, although entirely warranted, were met with animosity from the wolves and confusion from Charlie. The pack was thoroughly convinced that the only possible danger in Bella's life was the vampire family she had attached herself to.

They hadn't been sure that Bella actually knew what the Cullens were until today, but having watched how comfortable they were around her, and having watched each of them nearly say or do something that might reveal them before remembering Charlie was there, they were positive that they could not have kept the secret from her all this time.

And Paul's thoughts kept circling back to the Preface, and the dangerous predator it had described. He didn't really know Bella, and he had actually hated her before because of her closeness with the leaches, but hearing her thoughts was making him feel like he really understood her somehow. He was afraid for her, and wanted to protect her.

 ** _Charlie left first, off to the police station that was his wife and family. After he left, I sat at the old square oak table in one of the three unmatching chairs and examined his small kitchen, with its dark paneled walls, bright yellow cabinets, and white linoleum floor. Nothing was changed. My mother had painted the cabinets eighteen years ago in an attempt to bring some sunshine into the house._**

 ** _Over the small fireplace in the adjoining handkerchief-sized family room was a row of pictures. First a wedding picture of Charlie and my mom in Las Vegas, then one of the three of us in the hospital after I was born, taken by a helpful nurse, followed by the procession of my school pictures up to last year's._**

 ** _Those were embarrassing to look at - I would have to see what I could do to get Charlie to put them somewhere else, at least while I was living here._**

"Why would those photos bother you?" Charlie asked, yet again confused. He was starting to feel like he didn't know his daughter at all. Her life through her eyes was so different from what he had always assumed it was, and there hadn't even been any big secrets revealed yet.

"I had always assumed that after mom left with me, that you would have found a way to move on, to let us go," Bella explained slowly, in an almost pained whisper. "Seeing those photos, I realized that even when I stopped coming to Forks, you never moved on, never healed. You still love mom to this day, and you still wanted a relationship with me despite how distant and difficult I had always been." Charlie was about to interrupt, wanting to tell her how much he loved her and that he never considered her difficult, but she continued before he could, "It made me feel awful for having pushed you away all those years, and it made me angry with mom for hurting you like that. And it made me incredibly sad because I knew in my heart that even if you hadn't found love again, mom had. Every time I saw those photos it reminded me of that, and it made me uncomfortable."

Edward listened to her speech, which almost sounded like a confession, and was suddenly struck with a bit of fear. He had assumed that when he left, she would move on and find love again. That was natural for humans, or so he thought, but she was so like Charlie in so many ways. They both gave themselves completely to their first loves without any trace of caution, and Charlie had never recovered, never found anyone else who could fill that void. What if Bella was the same way? What if when he left she never recovered, and was alone for the rest of her life?

He almost changed his mind right then, but then he remembered all the danger he was placing her in and quickly reassured himself. He was doing the right thing. Maybe Charlie had had such a hard time because of the constant reminders of what he had lost. Maybe if he didn't see those photos every day, or visit Bella every year, maybe then he would have healed and moved on…

So Edward decided to make sure Bella would have that chance. He would hide her photos, and anything else that might be a reminder of him and his family. And he would somehow convince the others not to visit her. A clean break. That would be his gift to her when he left, so she could heal the way her father never had.

Jasper was feeling all of Edward's anxiety and was growing suspicious. What was his brother planning? He decided when they took a break he would get some answers. But right now, he wanted the awkward emotional silence to end so they could continue reading, so he sent a dose of calm and peace throughout the room, and directed a bit of impatience to Billy. In no time, he was reading again.

 ** _It was impossible, being in this house, not to realize that Charlie had never gotten over my mom. It made me uncomfortable._**

Despite Jasper's influence, the sadness and discomfort they all felt at having Bella's words confirmed by the book's recording of her earlier thoughts was overwhelming, and he was growing more and more confused by the emotions coming from his brother. Something was going on, so when Billy paused again, clearing his throat, Jasper spoke up.

"You've been reading for a while Billy," he said kindly, "And I think some of our guests might be hungry." He knew they were. Even if he couldn't feel the intense hunger coming from the werewolves, the small grumbles in their stomachs would have eventually alerted him and the others to the fact. "I wouldn't be surprised if everyone skipped breakfast to come over here this morning."

The others quickly caught on to what he was trying to do. Esme stood smiling and spoke, "Why don't we take a short break and I will go make some breakfast for everyone? I'm sure everyone has a lot to talk about, and if we are going to be reading together all day, we might as well do it on a full stomach, right?" Emmett laughed quietly, no doubt picturing the looks he would get if he dragged a grizzly into the house to join the wolves for breakfast.

Jared looked decidedly upset at the idea of vampire cooking, but luckily kept his thoughts to himself. He just hoped the Cullen matriarch wasn't planning on spitting in their food. The venom would not agree with them at all…

Esme danced out of the room, headed for the kitchen, and Bella rose, "I'll help you Esme," she said at normal volume facing the kitchen, knowing her mother-figure would hear her. Then she turned back to the group in the living room and said, "Emily, would you like to join us? Something tells me those boys could eat us all out of house and home," she joked, sparking a smile in Emily, "And I'm sure Esme and I could use the extra set of hands."

Sam did not look pleased with the idea of his imprint being alone in the kitchen with a vampire, even if Bella would be there also, and was about to voice his concerns when Emily answered her, still smiling.

"You have no idea Bella," she said, "I swear, Sam alone could eat a whole horse in a single sitting." She laughed and Bella looked pleased with her acceptance.

"I'll come too," Kim suddenly piped up, surprising everyone, "Lord knows, you'll need all the help you can get, and I would love to get to know you better Bella."

The three women headed to join Esme in the kitchen, laughing and talking quietly amongst themselves, leaving the growing tension of the living room behind them.

Jasper was glad that Bella had instinctually separated the young human women from the others. He needed to speak to Edward about what was causing his internal turmoil and was worried that whatever was going on in his brother's head might cause a fight. It was best if the girls were not there for that.

So, turning to Edward with a look of determination he said too low for the humans still in the room to hear, "We need to talk."


	4. Chapter 4 You Want to Do What!

**Chapter 4 – You want to do what?!**

"We need to talk," Jasper was looking at Edward intently, still trying to puzzle out his strange emotional response to the book. They had barely scratched the surface of Bella's story, and if they were really going to read all four books, they had a very long way still to go, but already everyone was entirely on edge.

The room was filled with fear, anger, pain, confusion, jealousy, possessiveness, arrogance, hatred, and nervous energy. With Bella, Esme, Emily, and Kim now out of the room, taking with them their love, compassion, and patience, the already tense emotional state of the room was now brimming over, and Jasper could barely focus.

Edward was of course getting all of this information second-hand through his brother's thoughts and decided it was worth it to endure whatever interrogation Jasper had in mind if it separated them from the wolves for a bit so everyone could calm down.

"Alright," he responded, again too low for the humans to hear, though he noticed the wolves could hear him just fine despite being in their human forms, "Outside."

Jasper nodded almost imperceptibly and spoke again at a volume everyone could hear, "I'm going to go for a walk, get some fresh air," he said simply, hoping no one would ask him to explain too much, "This whole thing is giving me a lot to think about, and it will be a little bit before the ladies are back with breakfast anyway."

He rose and made his way to the door, Edward following close behind, saying simply, "I'll come with you."

They walked through the front door, and around the front of the house at human pace, until they were sure they were out of sight, and then they were running, flying into the woods. Edward knew what Jasper wanted to talk to him about, and did not want anyone to overhear them if he was going to explain this.

The came to a stop about ten miles north of the house, far enough away there was no risk of them being overheard, even by the other vampires.

"Ok Jasper," he began, deciding not to admit to knowing what this was about unless he had to, "what did you want to talk about?"

"How are you taking all of this?" he asked. It wasn't the question he really wanted to ask, but that didn't mean it wasn't an important one. After all, this morning was bound to be taking its toll on the mind-reader.

"I don't know Jazz," he answered honestly, "I just don't know. It's all too weird. Someone out there clearly knows about us, and the wolves, and that has me completely unnerved. This mystery person also possesses a powerful gift of some kind that they have decided to use on Bella, and that bothers me. It scares me that someone can get into her mind, when even I can't, and it makes me angry that someone would invade her privacy in that way, even though I would if I could. And that makes me feel guilty, especially since we are all now reading her private thoughts, invading her privacy ourselves.

I am terrified that these books are going to reveal what we are to Charlie, and that that will put him and Bella in even more danger than they already are. And I am afraid that if he learns the truth, Charlie might try to keep Bella away from me, since he already doesn't like me, or any of us really.

But at the same time, I can't help but feel like maybe it would be best if he did keep her away, for her own safety at least.

The wolves are all anxious, and angry, and suspicious, as I'm sure you've felt. They're judging Bella, and us, rather harshly, even though the book hasn't revealed anything about us at all yet, and that makes me furious. I can only assume that the hunter in the Preface was James when he attacked her in Phoenix, and I am not looking forward to reliving that through her point of view, but the wolves all assume that I'm the one that tried to kill her. And that makes me angrier than I can even express, but also incredibly sad, because I know that they aren't wrong for thinking that is a possibility, given everything that has happened.

I don't blame you for what happened on her birthday. You need to know that. But seeing you attack her like that, it brought everything back into perspective for me, and now I'm realizing how much danger she is in every time she comes over to the house. I could kill her. She is my singer, and no matter how much I love her, there is a part of me that wants very much to kill her, and that scares me so much Jazz.

I had started to get over some of those fears, but listening to the wolves' accusations has brought it all back, and I want to be angry at them, but I also know they are at least partially right. So I'm really conflicted.

And I just keep thinking, if I'm reacting like this to hearing Bella talk about mundane, everyday things like flying to Forks and talking to Charlie, what is going to happen when I hear her reactions to finding out what we really are? What happens when she expresses her fear on the baseball field, or her disappointment on her birthday? How can I listen to that?

And then I keep going back to that damn Preface. I know she survived, and that should be a comfort to me. I know what really happened and I know that she is ok, so I should be in a much better head-space than the wolves who are confused and angry, but I'm not. Not at all. She was so accepting of her fate, so ready to die. And it is my fault. She was ready to die, without a second thought, and she didn't think that we were going to save her. And it was all my fault. And I have no idea how to deal with that.

So bad, Jazz. I'm doing really, really bad." Edward finished his emotional rant, and stopped his nervous pacing to look at his brother, both of their eyes filled with unshed tears.

"I had no idea this would have such a huge impact on you," Jasper responded almost silently, completely taken aback by his brother's unusually long-winded explanation. He had been fully prepared to dig for answers for an hour if need be, and he knew that something else was going on, but Edward was opening up to him, and he hadn't expected that.

"She is my everything. Bella is my entire world. And that room is filled with her entire family. Not just us, but everyone in Forks and La Push who cares about her. Her father. Her childhood friend, and his father, a man who truly sees Bella as his daughter also. The wolves, her protectors, are an extension of her father's world, and if we weren't here, I have no doubt they would have been like family to her. Their reactions to her and her thoughts are almost painful to bear.

And I am so frustrated because the only person's reaction I really truly want to hear is Bella's, and she is still a complete mystery to me. Even as this S.M. is revealing bits and pieces of Bella's mind to us, her thoughts now are still lost to me."

Jasper took in everything he was saying, absorbing his confessed fears, but he didn't know how to respond. Not because he couldn't understand or didn't agree with his assessments, but because there was still something underneath all the fear, anger, and frustration. A layer beneath his love for Bella and his anxiety about S.M. that he was desperately trying to hide.

Resolve. Edward had made a decision, something monumental, something drastic, something to do with Bella and the family, and something he really did not want his brother to know about. He was trying to hide it, but Jasper was not fooled, and decided to confront it head on.

"I understand what you are feeling Edward, better than anyone else because I can feel it too," he began, "And I do think we need to talk about everything you just told me. But that is not the real reason I asked to speak to you, and I think you know that."

"What do you want from me Jasper?" He sounded so tired, almost defeated.

"I want you to tell me what you are planning that has you so wound up. I want to know why you are feeling so guilty about whatever is going on. And I want to know why you are trying so hard to hide it from me. What is going on Edward? What are you planning?"

He was pacing again, but upon hearing the onslaught of questions, he dropped to the ground and put his head in his hands. His eyes were filled with tears that would never fall. His mind was a jumble of confusion unease that wouldn't sort itself out. And his heart felt like it was being torn apart. How could he explain this to Jasper? His eldest brother was not particularly close to Bella, at least not like the rest of the family, but he still had no idea how to explain this to him.

"Edward?" Jasper asked, prodding him when he didn't respond.

"We have to leave," he uttered with a choked sob, making no attempt to explain what he meant.

"Leave? Leave Forks? What? Why? Who's we? You and Bella? You can't leave the family. You can't! Alice loves her like a sister. Esme and Carlisle love her like a daughter. And we would never want you to leave us. You and Bella are the heart of the family! Why? Why would you want to leave us? Does Bella want to go? Is this because of her birthday? Oh God, she hates me now doesn't she? She's afraid of me, and now she wants to leave. But she can't! God, even Rosalie would miss her, and she hates everyone! Did you see her today? They're really becoming sisters, and they are going to lose that because of me! God, I'm so sorry. Now it all makes sense. Why you didn't want me to feel this, why you didn't want me to know. You blame me, don't you? I'm a monster, and you finally see it, and you want to protect her from me. And she wants to leave to. My baby sister is afraid of me…"

Jasper's words come in an emotional tidal wave, rushing past his lips with panic and urgency. He completely misunderstands what Edward means, and yet his outburst touches on every nerve that his brother has been fighting with for days. The family loves Bella and she loves them, and he has no idea how to deal with this. But he can't stand to see Jasper hating himself like this, so he has to explain, somehow.

Unfortunately, before he can say a single word, Emmett, and Rosalie join the brothers. Neither of them had heard their siblings approach, having been so buried in their own thoughts and feelings they didn't notice the newcomers until they were right there with them. Having just heard everything Jasper said…

"What are you talking about Jasper?" Rosalie asked, confused, trying to find a way to soothe her brother. She might not be the most nurturing type, but she didn't like seeing them both in so much pain. And she wanted to know why he thought Edward and Bella were going to leave Forks. That didn't even make sense.

"Edward and Bella are going to leave us. She is in danger from me, and I finally drove her away. Her birthday. God, it's all my fault. And now they are going to leave."

Emmett and Rose looked to Edward for answers as the heartbroken sob of an explanation left Jasper's lips, confirming what they had gleaned from earlier.

"That's not it at all Jasper," he cut in before they could start asking questions or blaming Bella, "I haven't even spoken to her yet. I don't blame you Jasper, and I don't think she does either. You try so hard to resist that side of yourself and you struggle sometimes. I know that, and so does she."

"But then why leave?" Rose asked. She was so confused.

"Bella's not going anywhere," Edward said, his voice a little ragged, "But we are. Just listen ok. She is human. She has her whole life ahead of her. And we are putting that at risk. I am putting that at risk."

"What are you talking about man?" Emmett asked, now totally lost.

"She is my singer. I nearly killed her the day we met. I barely resist killing her most days. You all struggle with the bloodlust when she is around. Jasper nearly killed her on her birthday, through no real fault of his own, but still. A papercut, something that should have been an inconsequential side note, quickly remedied and forgotten, nearly cost her her life. Then there is James. He hunted her. He beat her. He bit her! All because she was with us, with me. How can I justify putting her in that kind of danger?"

"What are you saying Edward? That we just up and leave? That we move away and leave her behind?" Rosalie sounded completely appalled at the idea of leaving her new sister behind, no matter how much she drove her crazy most of the time. No matter how much she envied her humanity, and feared the potential threat she initially posed to the family, she had come to care about Bella, and she didn't want to leave her. "That's absurd!"

"She's right man," Emmett joined in, "Bella is a part of this family now. If we go, she is going to want to come with us. We can't just leave her behind."

"She doesn't get a say," Edward said angrily. Couldn't they see he was just trying to protect her. "We will all be gone before I tell her. She won't be able to find us even if she does look. It doesn't matter if she wants to come. This is what's best for her."

"You are talking about her life Edward! Doesn't she get a say?! Don't we?!" Rosalie was pissed now, "Who are you to decide for her?! I may not agree with her choices most of the time, but she loves you, and you are going to just abandon her?!"

"I'm not abandoning her! I'm trying to save her!"

"By leaving her here alone, unprotected?" Jasper overcame his shock and caught up to Rosalie. He was angry now. What the hell was his brother thinking?

"I'm trying to protect her from me! From us! From our world!"

"She is a part of our world now though. Victoria knows that she knows about us. What if she goes to the Volturi? Or just decides to come after Bella for revenge? James was her mate; we have to expect some sort of retaliation for his death. What would leaving her here defenseless accomplish?! Other than getting her killed and making everyone miserable?!" Jasper wasn't just angry anymore. He was absolutely livid, irate, boiling with rage. His brother was a moron!

"I was already planning on tracking down Victoria," Edward explained, still convinced his way was the only way to protect Bella, "She will want revenge on the one who killed him. She will assume it was me. That's just another reason why I shouldn't be where Bella is. So she doesn't get caught in the crosshairs."

"Forget Victoria for a minute," Emmett said, barely holding on to his semblance of calm, "What about Laurent? And the Denali clan? They all know who she is, where she is, and that she knows about us. If any of them ever encounter the Volturi and Aro learns of this, they'll kill her. And us. And that's assuming the Denali's don't tell anyone. Do you really think Tanya will keep quiet about your human mate? She has been trying to catch your eye for decades and now you are with Bella instead of her. You know what they say about a woman scorned… She will probably shout the news from the rooftops. Bella will have a target on her back."

"He's right," Rose agreed, "And even if Laurent stays with the Denali clan, and none of them ever tell a soul, and the Volturi never discover the truth, and you track down and kill Victoria… which is a lot of maybes… Even then, any nomad that passes through the area will be drawn straight to her. Her blood is so much more appealing than any other human's. You know that. What's to stop the next James character who passes through the area from killing her if we aren't here to protect her?"

Edward didn't want to listen to them. He was a danger to the one he loved, and he had to believe that he could save her somehow. He couldn't admit that they had a good point. "The Denalis would never betray us. Telling anyone would endanger all of us, not just Bella, and they would never do that. Not even Tanya. Laurent was never loyal to James and was pleased that someone was finally going to end his games. He would never seek revenge. And like I said, Victoria will come for me, not Bella, and when she does we will kill her."

"Ok, fine, let's assume you're right. Which I am not convinced you are. What about the threat from nomads?" Jasper tried a different approach. He saw that yelling at Edward wasn't getting them anywhere. But he needed to get through to him somehow, before he made the biggest mistake of his life.

"She survived her whole life without ever even meeting another vampire. Nomads won't be a problem. Besides, La Push is protected by the wolves. They will keep any potential nomads away from Forks altogether."

Jasper scoffed at that. The wolves hadn't done anything to keep James and his little coven away, even when they were killing humans in the woods right outside Forks, so how could he entrust them to protect her now? "You want to leave Bella in the care of young, volatile werewolves? Wolves who are incredibly angry with her for aligning herself with us?"

He had hoped that this jab would finally get through to Edward, but it didn't. He was so damn convinced he was right. His response was entirely calm, and almost arrogant, "I trust them to keep watch over their land as they have for generations. They don't have to have any direct interaction with Bella. She just falls under their general sphere of protection by being here. And if she were to leave Forks, she would go to live with her mother, in Phoenix, or maybe Jacksonville. Both sunny, crowded cities where she would never cross paths with one of us. Maybe I will even suggest that when I tell her we are leaving."

"WE ARE NOT LEAVING!" Emmett bellowed, tired of Jasper's approach, "Don't you get it?! Even if it was in her best interest, which it's not! Even if she wanted us to leave, which we all know she doesn't! Even if I believed for a second that she would be safe here without us to look out for her, which I DON'T! Even then, I would NOT leave my baby sister!"

"Bella is my mate! And if I say this is the way, then we will do it!" Edward's eyes had gone completely black and he looked as if he might attack Emmett, but the big man did not back down for a second.

"You are not the only one who loves her Edward! She may be your mate, but she is my sister! Rosalie's sister! Jasper's sister! Alice's sister! Carlisle and Esme love her like a daughter! Can you even imagine what it would do to Esme to lose her daughter?! You know! You know better than anyone what it did to her, losing her first-born! Can you take away her child?! Leaving Bella would tear this family apart!" Emmett was right up in Edward's face, Rose and Jasper flanking him, looking equally furious, all their eyes a matching pitch, "And what about Bells? She sees us as her family, her brothers and sisters, the parents she never had! Are you prepared to rip her entire family away from her?! To leave her completely alone?! It will BREAK HER!"

Edward was so surprised by his brother's outburst. Emmett was always the fun-loving, childish one. He was the one who couldn't take anything seriously, and went along with whatever the family had planned. He was the prankster, the eternal goofball.

When Edward had been contemplating how to tell the family about his decision, he had never even considered Emmett. He had been planning on talking it through with Carlisle first. He would be the most unemotional. They would work through everything together, and once he was convinced, they would tell the family together. Esme would be upset, but she would trust her husband and accept it. Alice would be devastated, but she would understand the logic, and she would eventually agree.

He had thought that Rosalie would be thrilled to leave. It didn't seem like she liked Bella much, and she wanted her to stay human more than anything. And after what happened at Bella's birthday, he had thought Jasper would be relieved to get away from the temptation. Yet here they were, both of them, furious that he wanted to leave, and fighting him on it.

And he seriously hadn't even considered Emmett. He thought his brother would be excited about moving to a new town, probably make a joke about needing to find a place with a lot of bears, and then go along with whatever they decided. He had never anticipated this level of resistance. It threw him for a loop.

"You really love her don't you?" he uttered as he dropped to his knees, looking like he might sob, "I don't want to hurt the family. I just don't know how else to save her…"

"She is one of us Edward. We all love her. And she loves us. She loves you. You can't leave her. None of us can. Someday, in a couple years, we will leave Forks. And Bella will come with us. And someday you or Carlisle will change her." Rosalie had been getting through to him, until that last comment. Suddenly, he was back to angry and stubborn.

"No, absolutely not! She will NOT become one of us!" He screamed at her. How could she say that? Rosalie hated being a vampire. She didn't wish this life on anyone. Why would she… It was just too much. They had to leave, before that could happen, even on accident.

"It's going to happen Edward," Jasper voiced in a subdued voice, sending waves of calm to everyone, "Alice has seen it. She says it's like the visions she sees of a storm coming or the sun coming out. There is no specific decision or action that she can trace the vision back to, but it is absolute, and unchangeable. She doesn't know exactly when, or why, but Bella will be one of us. If we stay, if we go, if she chooses it, or if its forced on her by someone else. No matter what, Bella will not live out her life human. It just isn't in the cards. Never was."

"No no no no no…" Edward could see from Jasper's thoughts the memories of Alice explaining about Bella's fate, about the dozens of visions she had hidden from him about her future. He didn't know how to face that.

"It's ok Edward," Rosalie crouched down beside him, trying to soothe him, "You know that this isn't the life I wanted, that I would have preferred a human life. But that wasn't the path my life was meant to take. And this life brought me to Emmett," she smiled up at her husband before continuing, "I didn't want Bella to get caught up in this world, but she has. And if Alice is right, she would have even if she had never met us. And this world brought her to you, to her mate and the love of her life, and to this family. She has made you happier than I have ever seen you. And she is the glue that holds this family together. She completes us."

Jasper felt Edward starting to panic again and sent him waves of calm, "We can deal with all the rest of it later," he promised his brother, "Just swear to us that you won't try to leave Bella for her own good. Swear that you won't try to get the family to leave her behind. Please, Edward promise me you won't do that to her, or to us."

There was a long silence as Edward squeezed his eyes shut, deep in thought, sobbing quietly, before he answered his siblings.

"I promise…"


	5. Chapter 5 First Sight Part 2

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **A/N:** This chapter is particularly long, and contains large sections of the original book text. I hope you enjoy. Also, thank you to all my reviewers out there helping me make this an amazing story. I hope to continue to hear from you. :)

 **Chapter 5 – First Sight Part 2**

"I promise…" Edward's soft words floated up to his siblings, and he was suddenly pulled into Rosalie's tight embrace.

"Everything is going to be ok you know. I never thought I would say this, but Bella is so strong, and so brave. And she is so full of love. I don't think there is anything she can't handle," his sister's voice brought him out of his panic and fear. Bella was absolutely perfect in his mind, and his sister's praise was the first thing any of them had said all morning that was well received. "We are all going to get through this, together."

"Together," Edward agreed, "Thank you guys. I had originally planned on getting Carlisle on my side before even broaching this subject with any of you guys, and I doubt you would have been nearly as openly opposed if that was the case. And I needed to hear all of that, or I don't think I could have ever changed my mind."

"Maybe that's why S.M., whoever they are, sent the books in the first place," Jasper mused, "To put us in a position where we could convince you not to do something stupid. Because if you are right, then the books about her future are going to show us all exactly what a bad idea it would be to leave her."

"You think I will still leave her in the book future, even though I'm not going to now?" Edward asked, suddenly worried again. If Bella heard the horrible things he had planned to say to her when he left… No, God, she would hate him so much for that, even if he wasn't really going to do it. Surely, she would hate him simply for being capable of it, wouldn't she?

"I'm almost certain of it," Jasper responded quietly, feeling all of Edward's newfound fear and anxiety.

"This day just keeps getting better and better…"

"Let's just get back to the house," Rosalie brought them all back to the present moment, "The food will be ready by now, and with how fast the wolves eat, they may even be ready to start reading again. And I don't want to miss anything. For Bella, all of this is old news, memories. And some of it will be for us too, at least in this book, but I still want to hear about all the stuff that happened when we weren't around."

Emmett suddenly started laughing loudly, returning to the normal goofball they all knew and loved, seriousness forgotten for the moment. "Yes! The whole family, and the pack, and BELLA'S FATHER, are all going to get a first-hand account of all of your nights together over the last year! The reactions are going to be PRICELESS!"

Edward grimaced slightly hearing exactly what Emmett was hoping to hear about, and seeing all the disgusting mental images he was having, "God Emmett, get your mind out of the gutter. That's your sister you're picturing!"

"Ok. That was more than I needed to know," Rose jumped in, pulling Edward to a standing position and turning back toward the house, "Time to go back and hear the rest of what is bound to be a riveting story."

They ran all the way back to the house, and heard someone… Paul? … complaining in the front room, "When are the leeches going to get back here? I want to get back to this story. We have barely read anything, and absolutely nothing so far has been of any use for us. There has to be a reason that we were meant to be here, and with our luck it won't be until like book four, so can we get back to it?"

They burst through the front door just as he was finishing his rant, and Bella returned from the kitchen where she had evidently been washing the breakfast dishes.

"Yes Paul, we can get back to reading," she responded happily, her tone light and teasing, "I would hate for you to become bored with the inner musings of a member of the opposite sex. Maybe if you pay attention, you might actually learn a thing or two about women… Hmmm, maybe that's why S.M. insisted on you being here, so you could learn how women think?"

Everyone was suddenly laughing so hard the humans were holding their sides and struggling to breathe. Only Paul didn't enjoy the joke, as it was made solely at his expense, and he glared murderously at Bella. His hands began to tremble, and the vampires became a little tense, but one look from Sam and he calmed down enough to avert his gaze and still his hands.

"Right, shall we begin?" Billy asked as the laughter died down.

"Yes," Carlisle responded, "But you've read long enough. Why don't I take a turn?" he offered, and Billy handed him the book as everyone settled in to finish the chapter. Were they really still on the first chapter?

 ** _I didn't want to be too early to school, but I couldn't stay in the house anymore. I donned my jacket - which had the feel of a biohazard suit -and headed out into the rain._**

 ** _It was just drizzling still, not enough to soak me through immediately as I reached for the house key that was always hidden under the eaves by the door, and locked up. The sloshing of my new waterproof boots was unnerving. I missed the normal crunch of gravel as I walked. I couldn't pause and admire my truck again as I wanted; I was in a hurry to get out of the misty wet that swirled around my head and clung to my hair under my hood._**

"You really do hate the weather here don't you?" Jake commented.

"Yes," Bella replied evenly, "I hate the rain. And the snow. And really any kind of weather that doesn't involve dry heat and sunshine. But it is worth it, and I eventually more or less got over it. So please just trudge through my inner dialog about mist and rain for a few more chapters. I do eventually have much more interesting topics to contemplate."

'Like vampires, dying, family drama, love, and my possible future as an immortal' she continued in her head, again thankful S.M. wasn't here to reveal this line of thought to anyone.

 ** _Inside the truck, it was nice and dry. Either Billy or Charlie had obviously cleaned it up, but the tan upholstered seats still smelled faintly of tobacco, gasoline, and peppermint. The engine started quickly, to my relief, but loudly, roaring to life and then idling at top volume. Well, a truck this old was bound to have a flaw. The antique radio worked, a plus that I hadn't expected._**

"The radio in the truck didn't look that old," Charlie commented in a curious tone, "In fact, I think this morning I saw it had SAT capabilities."

"New radio Ch-Dad," Bella explained, "It was a gift from my brot- from the Cullens. For my birthday…"

Everyone noticed that she very nearly called Emmett and Jasper her brothers, and they were both suddenly grinning from ear to ear, while the wolves all took on horrible grimaces at the same comment.

"Oh," Charlie responded lamely, and Carlisle took the opportunity to continue reading.

 ** _Finding the school wasn't difficult, though I'd never been there before. The school was, like most other things, just off the highway. It was not obvious that it was a school; only the sign, which declared it to be the Forks High School, made me stop. It looked like a collection of matching houses, built with maroon-colored bricks. There were so many trees and shrubs I couldn't see its size at first. Where was the feel of the institution? I wondered nostalgically. Where were the chain-link fences, the metal detectors?_**

Bella was the only one in the room who had ever attended a big city high school, so understandably everyone was looking at her like she was crazy. Again. She blushed at their glances and looked nervously at her hands, praying she wouldn't have to explain in detail to her overprotective father and boyfriend the dangers of attending a big school in a place like Phoenix.

 ** _I parked in front of the first building, which had a small sign over the door reading front office. No one else was parked there, so I was sure it was off limits, but I decided I would get directions inside instead of circling around in the rain like an idiot. I stepped unwillingly out of the toasty truck cab and walked down a little stone path lined with dark hedges. I took a deep breath before opening the door. Inside, it was brightly lit, and warmer than I'd hoped. The office was small; a little waiting area with padded folding chairs, orange-flecked commercial carpet, notices and awards cluttering the walls, a big clock ticking loudly. Plants grew everywhere in large plastic pots, as if there wasn't enough greenery outside. The room was cut in half by a long counter, cluttered with wire baskets full of papers and brightly colored flyers taped to its front. There were three desks behind the counter, one of which was manned by a large, red-haired woman wearing glasses. She was wearing a purple t-shirt, which immediately made me feel overdressed._**

 ** _The red-haired woman looked up. "Can I help you?"_**

 ** _"I'm Isabella Swan," I informed her, and saw the immediate awareness light her eyes. I was expected, a topic of gossip no doubt. Daughter of the Chief's flighty ex-wife, come home at last._**

"It's not my fault the whole town of Forks gossips like old women," Charlie whined, "I really didn't tell anyone anything."

"Ha!" Billy exclaimed, contradicting his friend, "You were telling anyone who would listen that your girl here was coming home. And everyone knew about you and Renee's history. How could we not? We all remember how messed up you were after she left. It was bound to spark talk when you went around talking about Bella coming home."

Harry and Sue were laughing, for the first time since this whole thing started, they seemed relatively at ease. Even Old Quil was smiling as the men bantered back and forth for several minutes.

While they were being pulled into their own side conversation, Paul leaned over to Bella and asked her, "Renee's your mom right?" He was intrigued by all the side notes about her mother.

"Yeah," Bella replied quietly, unsure why Paul was talking to her. He had always seemed so distant, and they barely knew each other, but today he was making more and more side comments and asking questions. And he seemed genuinely interested. "She and Charlie were married young. Before they really even had a handle on married life, I came along and complicated everything."

Paul nodded in understanding, urging her to continue. All the Cullens could hear her, she knew, but they were studiously watching the ongoing teasing between the humans, trying to give her a bit of privacy in the crowded room.

"Renee loved Charlie truly," she continued, noticing his brow furrow slightly at the continued use of their first names rather than 'mom' or 'dad', "but she always wanted more in her life than the small town of Forks could offer her, and Charlie would never leave this place. So one day, when I was very young, she decided to leave, and take me with her. They were divorced within the year."

"That must have been hard on you," Paul said, remembering how difficult his own childhood had been and feeling sorry for Bella. He knew what it was like to feel disconnected from your parents, to have no one to lean on, and he hated the fact that she got pulled into the middle of her parents' marital battle.

"I was too young to really remember most of it," Bella explained with a shrug, "I never really knew Charlie. I mean, he's my father biologically, but he didn't raise me. He was just the man that we spent vacations with over summer. I love him, I do," she felt the need to assure him of that, especially since she knew her whole adopted family was listening too, "but I didn't know him growing up. I never really had a father figure, so there was nothing to miss. Does that make sense?"

He nodded, and she could tell that there was a story behind his interest. She just hoped that he might tell her someday. Or maybe the books would reveal it…

Edward realized their conversation was coming to a close and decided that the humans, who were still bickering good naturedly, needed to be brought back to attention. He cleared his throat somewhat noisily and said, "Why don't we continue with the story? We really do still have a lot to read."

"Of course son," Carlisle responded, picking up the book once again.

 ** _"Of course," she said. She dug through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk until she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedule right here, and a map of the school." She brought several sheets to the counter to show me._**

 ** _She went through my classes for me, highlighting the best route to each on the map, and gave me a slip to have each teacher sign, which I was to bring back at the end of the day. She smiled at me and hoped, like Charlie, that I would like it here in Forks. I smiled back as convincingly as I could._**

 ** _When I went back out to my truck, other students were starting to arrive. I drove around the school, following the line of traffic. I was glad to see that most of the cars were older like mine, nothing flashy. At home I'd lived in one of the few lower-income neighborhoods that were included in the Paradise Valley District. It was a common thing to see a new Mercedes or Porsche in the student lot. The nicest car here was a shiny Volvo, and it stood out._**

"My Volvo," Edward uttered almost reverently. Bella chuckled at his reaction. The man really did love his car. It was rather cute.

 ** _Still, I cut the engine as soon as I was in a spot, so that the thunderous volume wouldn't draw attention to me._**

 ** _I looked at the map in the truck, trying to memorize it now; hopefully I wouldn't have to walk around with it stuck in front of my nose all day. I stuffed everything in my bag, slung the strap over my shoulder, and sucked in a huge breath. I can do this, I lied to myself feebly. No one was going to bite me._**

This elicited thunderous laughter from Emmett and Rosalie both, and the wolves growled their disapproval just as quickly. It took all of Jasper's concentration once again to calm the group down and get the story back underway. Charlie just looked lost through the whole thing.

 ** _I finally exhaled and stepped out of the truck._**

 ** _I kept my face pulled back into my hood as I walked to the sidewalk, crowded with teenagers. My plain black jacket didn't stand out, I noticed with relief._**

 ** _Once I got around the cafeteria, building three was easy to spot. A large black "3" was painted on a white square on the east corner. I felt my breathing gradually creeping toward hyperventilation as I approached the door. I tried holding my breath as I followed two unisex raincoats through the door._**

 ** _The classroom was small. The people in front of me stopped just inside the door to hang up their coats on a long row of hooks. I copied them. They were two girls, one a porcelain-colored blonde, the other also pale, with light brown hair. At least my skin wouldn't be a standout here._**

 ** _I took the slip up to the teacher, a tall, balding man whose desk had a nameplate identifying him as Mr. Mason. He gawked at me when he saw my name - not an encouraging response - and of course I flushed tomato red. But at least he sent me to an empty desk at the back without introducing me to the class. It was harder for my new classmates to stare at me in the back, but somehow, they managed. I kept my eyes down on the reading list the teacher had given me. It was fairly basic: Bronte, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Faulkner. I'd already read everything._**

"Basic?" Jacob gawked at her, "That stuff is like reading a metaphorical poem in a foreign language. It's impossible!"

Bella laughed at her friend's genuine look of fear. 'How could anyone be that afraid of a little light reading?' "Oh Jake," she sighed, trying unsuccessfully to quiet her giggles, "Some of us actually enjoy reading the classics."

Old Quil looked pleased with her, smiling, "It is nice to see a young woman today still interested in such works," he said, his eyes glazing over with memories of his past, "There was a time when everyone I knew read such things, but young people today are so out of touch with their past and culture."

Carlisle was nodding his agreement, as were Edward and Jasper. Billy's eyes widened as he remembered that these three were even older than Old Quil and likely shared the same style of upbringing. None of the tribe knew the specifics of their histories, and he couldn't help but wonder if they would be revealed in these books.

"What can I say?" Bella's voice brought them all out of their revere, "I guess I'm just an old soul."

 ** _That was comforting... and boring. I wondered if my mom would send me my folder of old essays, or if she would think that was cheating. I went through different arguments with her in my head while the teacher droned on._**

 ** _When the bell rang, a nasal buzzing sound, a gangly boy with skin problems and hair black as an oil slick leaned across the aisle to talk to me._**

"Eric" all the Cullen children muttered in unison, clearly annoyed, and looking and sounding very much like your average teenagers in that moment.

 ** _"You're Isabella Swan, aren't you?" He looked like the overly helpful, chess club type._**

 ** _"Bella," I corrected. Everyone within a three-seat radius turned to look at me._**

 ** _"Where's your next class?" he asked._**

 ** _I had to check in my bag. "Um, Government, with Jefferson, in building six."_**

 ** _There was nowhere to look without meeting curious eyes._**

 ** _"I'm headed toward building four, I could show you the way..." Definitely over-helpful. "I'm Eric," he added._**

"Told you…" one of the Cullens added barely above a whisper.

 ** _I smiled tentatively. "Thanks."_**

 ** _We got our jackets and headed out into the rain, which had picked up. I could have sworn several people behind us were walking close enough to eavesdrop. I hoped I wasn't getting paranoid._**

 ** _"So, this is a lot different than Phoenix, huh?" he asked._**

 ** _"Very."_**

 ** _"It doesn't rain much there, does it?"_**

 ** _"Three or four times a year."_**

 ** _"Wow, what must that be like?" he wondered._**

 ** _"Sunny," I told him._**

 ** _"You don't look very tan."_**

 ** _"My mother is part albino."_**

"Bella?" Charlie asked unsure. He obviously knew Renee was most certainly not part albino and was confused by her comment.

"My God," she responded, sounding irritated, "It was sarcasm. Don't worry, Eric didn't get the joke either. I'm pretty sure Forks has some secret power to suck the sense of humor out of people…"

Paul and Sam both laughed at this, thoroughly enjoying this side of Bella.

 ** _He studied my face apprehensively, and I sighed. It looked like clouds and a sense of humor didn't mix. A few months of this and I'd forget how to use sarcasm._**

 ** _We walked back around the cafeteria, to the south buildings by the gym. Eric walked me right to the door, though it was clearly marked._**

 ** _"Well, good luck," he said as I touched the handle. "Maybe we'll have some other classes together." He sounded hopeful._**

 ** _I smiled at him vaguely and went inside._**

 ** _The rest of the morning passed in about the same fashion. My Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Varner, who I would have hated anyway just because of the subject he taught, was the only one who made me stand in front of the class and introduce myself. I stammered, blushed, and tripped over my own boots on the way to my seat._**

 ** _After two classes, I started to recognize several of the faces in each class. There was always someone braver than the others who would introduce themselves and ask me questions about how I was liking Forks. I tried to be diplomatic, but mostly I just lied a lot. At least I never needed the map._**

 ** _One girl sat next to me in both Trig and Spanish, and she walked with me to the cafeteria for lunch. She was tiny, several inches shorter than my five feet four inches, but her wildly curly dark hair made up a lot of the difference between our heights._**

"Jessica" Edward growled the name, making it clear he did not like the girl at all.

 ** _I couldn't remember her name, so I smiled and nodded as she prattled about teachers and classes. I didn't try to keep up._**

"No one can with her," Rosalie added, her face just as annoyed as Edward's. Carlisle and Esme both noticed and decided to ask the children about this reaction later.

 ** _We sat at the end of a full table with several of her friends, who she introduced to me. I forgot all their names as soon as she spoke them. They seemed impressed by her bravery in speaking to me. The boy from English, Eric, waved at me from across the room._**

 ** _It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with seven curious strangers, that I first saw them._**

"Here we come," Alice squealed with excitement, "I can't wait to see what your real first impressions of us were Bella."

 ** _They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room. There were five of them. They weren't talking, and they weren't eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. They weren't gawking at me, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, my attention._**

"You really are too observant," Carlisle said, before beginning to read again.

 ** _They didn't look anything alike. Of the three boys, one was big - muscled like a serious weight lifter, with dark, curly hair._**

"Ha!" Emmett boomed, "She noticed me first!" He was smiling like a Cheshire cat, and Bella giggled at his reaction.

 ** _Another was taller, leaner, but still muscular, and honey blond._**

"I suppose that'd be me," Jasper added helpfully.

 ** _The last was lanky, less bulky, with untidy, bronze-colored hair._**

"And me," Edward chimed in. He was the most interested in her descriptions and reactions. He was thoroughly convinced that they must have scared her at some point despite her constant assurances that that was not the case, and he was looking forward to finding out for sure one way or the other.

 ** _He was more boyish than the others, who looked like they could be in college, or even teachers here rather than students._**

 ** _The girls were opposites. The tall one was statuesque. She had a beautiful figure, the kind you saw on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, the kind that made every girl around her take a hit on her self-esteem just by being in the same room. Her hair was golden, gently waving to the middle of her back._**

"Why thank you Bella," Rosalie spoke up, looking emotional.

"Just calling it as I see it," Bella added truthfully.

 ** _The short girl was pixie like, thin in the extreme, with small features. Her hair was a deep black, cropped short and pointing in every direction._**

"Pixie like?!" Alice looked hurt.

"Like a bubbly little fairy," Bella clarified, giggling at her sister's reaction to the description, "Or maybe a little water sprite," she added, thinking deeply, "You're perfect just the way you are Ali."

If Alice could blush she would have. Smiling kindly she answered, "Thanks Bella."

 ** _And yet, they were all exactly alike. Every one of them was chalky pale, the palest of all the students living in this sunless town. Paler than me, the albino. They all had very dark eyes despite the range in hair tones. They also had dark shadows under those eyes - purplish, bruise like shadows. As if they were all suffering from a sleepless night, or almost done recovering from a broken nose. Though their noses, all their features, were straight, perfect, angular._**

"Way too observant," Carlisle reiterated. If she had seen all of this in a moment's glance that very first day from all the way across a crowded high school cafeteria, they had never had a chance at keeping the truth from her.

 ** _But all this is not why I couldn't look away._**

 ** _I stared because their faces, so different, so similar, were all devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful. They were faces you never expected to see except perhaps on the airbrushed pages of a fashion magazine. Or painted by an old master as the face of an angel. It was hard to decide who was the most beautiful - maybe the perfect blond girl, or the bronze-haired boy._**

 ** _They were all looking away - away from each other, away from the other students, away from anything in particular as far as I could tell. As I watched, the small girl rose with her tray -unopened soda, unbitten apple - and walked away with a quick, graceful lope that belonged on a runway. I watched, amazed at her lithe dancer's step, till she dumped her tray and glided through the back door, faster than I would have thought possible. My eyes darted back to the others, who sat unchanging._**

"Too fast Alice," Carlisle chastised his daughter, internally grateful that the other human students didn't seem nearly as observant as their Bella was, or they would have had some real problems.

 ** _"Who are they?" I asked the girl from my Spanish class, whose name I'd forgotten._**

 ** _As she looked up to see who I meant - though already knowing, probably, from my tone - suddenly he looked at her, the thinner one, the boyish one, the youngest, perhaps. He looked at my neighbor for just a fraction of a second, and then his dark eyes flickered to mine._**

 ** _He looked away quickly, more quickly than I could, though in a flush of embarrassment I dropped my eyes at once. In that brief flash of a glance, his face held nothing of interest - it was as if she had called his name, and he'd looked up in involuntary response, already having decided not to answer._**

"You got all that from a half-second glance?" Edward asked, surprised. No wonder she hadn't been all that surprised that he could read minds. She likely would have figured it out all on her own with time.

"It seemed rather obvious," she said, looking somewhat embarrassed again, "And it makes perfect sense now. I'm actually surprised I didn't put the pieces together sooner."

This time Charlie wasn't the only one lost. None of the tribe, not even the wolves, knew about the Cullen's gifts, so they couldn't understand what she meant.

Carlisle quickly began again before anyone could ask. The book would reveal it in due time, but he didn't want to have to answer any questions about it until then.

 ** _My neighbor giggled in embarrassment, looking at the table like I did._**

 ** _"That's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife." She said this under her breath._**

 ** _I glanced sideways at the beautiful boy, who was looking at his tray now, picking a bagel to pieces with long, pale fingers. His mouth was moving very quickly, his perfect lips barely opening. The other three still looked away, and yet I felt he was speaking quietly to them._**

"Way, way too observant," this time it was Jasper commenting on all that she seemed to notice about them.

 ** _Strange, unpopular names, I thought. The kinds of names grandparents had. But maybe that was in vogue here - small town names? I finally remembered that my neighbor was called Jessica, a perfectly common name. There were two girls named Jessica in my History class back home._**

"That's because we are old enough to be grandparents," Rosalie muttered too low for the humans to hear, but the wolves caught her comment and looked decidedly displeased.

 ** _"They are... very nice-looking." I struggled with the conspicuous understatement._**

 ** _"Yes!" Jessica agreed with another giggle. "They're all together though - Emmett and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together." Her voice held all the shock and condemnation of the small town, I thought critically. But, if I was being honest, I had to admit that even in Phoenix, it would cause gossip._**

 ** _"Which ones are the Cullens?" I asked. "They don't look related..."_**

 ** _"Oh, they're not. Dr. Cullen is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Hales are brother and sister, twins - the blondes - and they're foster children."_**

 ** _"They look a little old for foster children."_**

"If only I knew how right I was," Bella commented lightly, again confusing the humans in the room. Normally she would have kept those sorts of things to herself in order to protect the secret, but since the books were already going to reveal everything anyway, she didn't see any harm in letting a few cryptic comments slip through.

 ** _"They are now, Jasper and Rosalie are both eighteen, but they've been with Mrs. Cullen since they were eight. She's their aunt or something like that."_**

 ** _"That's really kind of nice - for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything."_**

 ** _"I guess so," Jessica admitted reluctantly, and I got the impression that she didn't like the doctor and his wife for some reason. With the glances she was throwing at their adopted children, I would presume the reason was jealousy. "I think that Mrs. Cullen can't have any kids, though," she added, as if that lessened their kindness._**

 ** _Throughout all this conversation, my eyes flickered again and again to the table where the strange family sat. They continued to look at the walls and not eat._**

 ** _"Have they always lived in Forks?" I asked. Surely I would have noticed them on one of my summers here._**

 ** _"No," she said in a voice that implied it should be obvious, even to a new arrival like me. "They just moved down two years ago from somewhere in Alaska."_**

 ** _I felt a surge of pity, and relief. Pity because, as beautiful as they were, they were outsiders, clearly not accepted. Relief that I wasn't the only newcomer here, and certainly not the most interesting by any standard._**

"So that's what that was about," Jasper commented, sounding pleased, as if a puzzle he had been trying to solve had just finally pieced itself together for him. He had obviously felt that strange combination of emotions and had no idea what to make of them at the time.

 ** _As I examined them, the youngest, one of the Cullens, looked up and met my gaze, this time with evident curiosity in his expression. As I looked swiftly away, it seemed to me that his glance held some kind of unmet expectation._**

"Again, you saw right through me," Edward laughed. And Jasper flinched at the growing confusion and irritation coming from the guests.

 ** _"Which one is the boy with the reddish brown hair?" I asked. I peeked at him from the corner of my eye, and he was still staring at me, but not gawking like the other students had today - he had a slightly frustrated expression. I looked down again._**

 ** _"That's Edward. He's gorgeous, of course, but don't waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him." She sniffed, a clear case of sour grapes. I wondered when he'd turned her down._**

"Only every other day for the first six months we were here," Emmett joked, punching his brother in the shoulder as his face twisted in a grimace, no doubt in response to the man's thoughts.

"So that's why none of you like this Jessica girl?" Esme asked with genuine curiosity. She had been planning on asking them about this later anyway.

"Jessica Stanley was to Edward when we arrived what Mike Newton was, and honestly still is, to Bella," Alice answered, but her explanation didn't make much sense to the humans, or wolves. Even Carlisle looked a little confused.

"We haven't gotten to that part yet Ali," Bella reminded her gently.

"Right," she responded uneasily, "Well I guess it'll make more sense soon."

 ** _I bit my lip to hide my smile. Then I glanced at him again. His face was turned away, but I thought his cheek appeared lifted, as if he were smiling, too._**

 ** _After a few more minutes, the four of them left the table together. They all were noticeably graceful - even the big, brawny one. It was unsettling to watch. The one named Edward didn't look at me again._**

 ** _I sat at the table with Jessica and her friends longer than I would have if I'd been sitting alone. I was anxious not to be late for class on my first day. One of my new acquaintances, who considerately reminded me that her name was Angela, had Biology II with me the next hour. We walked to class together in silence. She was shy, too._**

 ** _When we entered the classroom, Angela went to sit at a black-topped lab table exactly like the ones I was used to. She already had a neighbor. In fact, all the tables were filled but one. Next to the center aisle, I recognized Edward Cullen by his unusual hair, sitting next to that single open seat._**

"Here we go," Bella muttered at the same time Edward grunted, "Just great…"

The Cullens didn't know the specifics of what happened that day and were curious about Bella's reactions, but they knew enough to understand these comments. The wolves however were completely lost. Weren't the happy couple deeply in love? Why wouldn't they want to relive the day that they met?

Charlie's thoughts were along the same lines, but he also knew that they hadn't started dating for at least a couple of weeks, so maybe they didn't get along at first. Edward sighed at the understatement of that thought.

 ** _As I walked down the aisle to introduce myself to the teacher and get my slip signed, I was watching him surreptitiously. Just as I passed, he suddenly went rigid in his seat. He stared at me again, meeting my eyes with the strangest expression on his face - it was hostile, furious. I looked away quickly, shocked, going red again. I stumbled over a book in the walkway and had to catch myself on the edge of a table. The girl sitting there giggled._**

 ** _I'd noticed that his eyes were black - coal black._**

 ** _Mr. Banner signed my slip and handed me a book with no nonsense about introductions. I could tell we were going to get along. Of course, he had no choice but to send me to the one open seat in the middle of the room. I kept my eyes down as I went to sit by him, bewildered by the antagonistic stare he'd given me._**

"I never intended to come across so upset," Edward said softly, apologetically, "You just completely caught me by surprise, and you honestly scared me quite a bit that day."

Again the wolves didn't understand. How could they? A vampire afraid of a human? It didn't make any sense, especially since she hadn't done or said anything to indicate she might be a threat, and at this point she didn't even know what he was. There was no way that they could understand that she was his singer, or that it wasn't really her he was afraid of so much as the temptation her blood posed him. He was afraid he wouldn't be strong enough to keep from killing her, and everyone else in the room.

"It's ok Edward," Bella reassured him quietly, "I understand now why you reacted the way that you did."

'Well that makes one of us' Charlie thought dryly. He was so confused it was starting to make it difficult for Jasper to concentrate, and his confusion was quickly turning to frustration and anger. The young Cullen did his best to calm the Chief, but it was not having nearly the desired effect.

 ** _I didn't look up as I set my book on the table and took my seat, but I saw his posture change from the corner of my eye. He was leaning away from me, sitting on the extreme edge of his chair and averting his face like he smelled something bad. Inconspicuously, I sniffed my hair. It smelled like strawberries, the scent of my favorite shampoo. It seemed an innocent enough odor. I let my hair fall over my right shoulder, making a dark curtain between us, and tried to pay attention to the teacher._**

 ** _Unfortunately, the lecture was on cellular anatomy, something I'd already studied. I took notes carefully anyway, always looking down._**

 ** _I couldn't stop myself from peeking occasionally through the screen of my hair at the strange boy next to me. During the whole class, he never relaxed his stiff position on the edge of his chair, sitting as far from me as possible. I could see his hand on his left leg was clenched into a fist, tendons standing out under his pale skin. This, too, he never relaxed. He had the long sleeves of his white shirt pushed up to his elbows, and his forearm was surprisingly hard and muscular beneath his light skin. He wasn't nearly as slight as he'd looked next to his burly brother._**

"So even when he was being a total jerk, you were still checking him out?" Emmett teased, and she blushed a deep burgundy and looked down without answering.

 ** _The class seemed to drag on longer than the others. Was it because the day was finally coming to a close, or because I was waiting for his tight fist to loosen? It never did; he continued to sit so still it looked like he wasn't breathing. What was wrong with him? Was this his normal behavior? I questioned my judgment on Jessica's bitterness at lunch today. Maybe she was not as resentful as I'd thought._**

 ** _It couldn't have anything to do with me. He didn't know me from Eve._**

 ** _I peeked up at him one more time, and regretted it. He was glaring down at me again, his black eyes full of revulsion. As I flinched away from him, shrinking against my chair, the phrase if looks could kill suddenly ran through my mind._**

 ** _At that moment, the bell rang loudly, making me jump, and Edward Cullen was out of his seat. Fluidly he rose - he was much taller than I'd thought - his back to me, and he was out the door before anyone else was out of their seat._**

"Too fast son," Carlisle chastised him the same way he had Alice. He really needed to have a talk with his children about their behavior around humans. They were not being nearly as inconspicuous as they needed to be.

"What did you expect me to do?" Edward challenged him. Killing a room full of teenagers would have been far worse for their desired privacy than rushing out of a classroom a bit too quickly. Carlisle seemed to realize just how close he had come to killing Bella that day and his expression softened somewhat.

 ** _I sat frozen in my seat, staring blankly after him. He was so mean. It wasn't fair. I began gathering up my things slowly, trying to block the anger that filled me, for fear my eyes would tear up. For some reason, my temper was hardwired to my tear ducts. I usually cried when I was angry, a humiliating tendency._**

 ** _"Aren't you Isabella Swan?" a male voice asked._**

 ** _I looked up to see a cute, baby-faced boy, his pale blond hair carefully gelled into orderly spikes, smiling at me in a friendly way. He obviously didn't think I smelled bad._**

Bella suddenly groaned and looked up at the ceiling annoyed. "Great," she muttered under her breath, "Mike Newton, enter stage right." Her irritation and sarcasm were so out of character that Charlie looked, yet again, confused, but her comment had all of the Cullens chuckling instantly.

 ** _"Bella," I corrected him, with a smile._**

 ** _"I'm Mike."_**

 ** _"Hi, Mike."_**

 ** _"Do you need any help finding your next class?"_**

 ** _"I'm headed to the gym, actually. I think I can find it."_**

 ** _"That's my next class, too." He seemed thrilled, though it wasn't that big of a coincidence in a school this small._**

 ** _We walked to class together; he was a chatterer - he supplied most of the conversation, which made it easy for me. He'd lived in California till he was ten, so he knew how I felt about the sun. It turned out he was in my English class also. He was the nicest person I'd met today._**

 ** _But as we were entering the gym, he asked, "So, did you stab Edward Cullen with a pencil or what? I've never seen him act like that."_**

"Fat lot of good that would have done," Jared grumbled. He almost wished she had tried to stab the jerk for behaving like that, but he also knew it would have just ended in a broken pencil and a very confused Bella.

Edward found that particular mental image very amusing and was suddenly laughing heartily, much to the confusion of everyone in the room, especially the humans who had not heard (not that Charlie would have understood even if he had) Jared's side comment.

 ** _I cringed. So I wasn't the only one who had noticed. And, apparently, that wasn't Edward Cullen's usual behavior. I decided to play dumb._**

 ** _"Was that the boy I sat next to in Biology?" I asked artlessly._**

 ** _"Yes," he said. "He looked like he was in pain or something."_**

"You were," Bella added in a saddened tone, "I'm sorry for that."

"Think nothing of it, love," he replied, holding her close and kissing her lightly on the forehead, "You weren't doing anything on purpose. And you had no way of knowing."

"Ok, that's it," Charlie suddenly said, irritated, "Someone tell me what the hell is going on. All these cryptic side conversations are making absolutely no sense whatsoever, and the existence of these books is impossible, and everyone is being way too damn secretive, so somebody START TALKING! NOW!"

Everyone was taken aback by the outburst from the usually calm and collected police chief, especially since he had been so quiet and good-natured throughout the readings so far. Only Jasper, and by extension Edward knew of his growing internal turmoil, so everyone else was thoroughly surprised.

'We can't tell him, can we?' Emmett mentally asked Edward, his thoughts mirroring those of the rest of the family, and the pack, but before he could respond or anyone could figure out what to do, Bella spoke.

"Dad," she reached out and grabbed his hand across the coffee table, squeezing gently as he looked into her eyes, "It's ok Dad. I know this is a lot to take in, and none of it makes sense right now. Trust me, I understand how you're feeling. I was in your shoes not so long ago, and we are hard-wired to think and feel in so many of the same ways." Charlie's expression softened as his daughter continued to speak, "The world is so much more complicated than either of us ever wanted to believe, and it is hard to accept at first. It seems impossible, and it makes your head hurt just trying to wrap your mind around all of it sometimes, but that doesn't make it any less real. So I need you to listen to me right now, ok?"

He nodded and squeezed the hand she still held, urging her to continue, "Everyone in this room has secrets. Some more than others. Some incredibly dark. But we all have them, myself included." His eyes widened slightly, but he stayed quiet, letting her keep going, "Someone out there, this S.M., has a gift, and by the looks of it, a powerful one. He or she, can see into my mind, and trust me, others have tried and failed, so that alone is no small feat." The wolves and elders look equal parts confused and intrigued at her last comment, but no one speaks, "S.M. can see into my past, and if the letters we all received are true, then she can see into my future as well. I know that's a lot to take in, but I have known people with both of these gifts, so I know for a fact that it is possible."

The Cullens' eyes grew wider as they heard her divulge this information, even though she did not name them in any way. And again the wolves reacted with confusion and fear. How many supernatural beings had Bella known in her life?

Charlie closed his eyes, trying to think, and Bella pushed on, "Having my eyes opened to this world and its secrets was not easy, and it was far from safe at times, but I came to understand and accept it with time. And it has brought incredible beauty and wonder into my life, that new light balancing out the darkness I found."

Her father looked as if he was about to interrupt but she held her hand up, silencing him, and continued, "S.M. has seen fit to bring you, and everyone else here into that world now also, and as much as that scares me, I am so happy to be able to share this all with you. You aren't going to like a lot of what you hear in the next few days, but if you can hear it, and accept it…" she trails off, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, and Jasper can feel the peace and hopefulness she is radiating in that moment. He projects it to everyone in the room, and small smiles form on all of their faces in response.

"Dad, I want you in my life, completely, with no secrets, and no lying, and this is our chance to have that," she continues, pleading with her eyes as a few tears leak down her cheeks, "So, for me, can you please just hold your questions? Let everything be revealed to you, the same way it was with me, and I think you will find everything is going to work out the way it is meant to."

Charlie was crying silent tears by the end of her impassioned speech, and everyone in the room was looking at her in awe. "Ok, kiddo," he said barely above a whisper, though obviously everyone in the room could easily hear him, "For you, I'd do just about anything."

'Join the club Charlie' Emmett thought snarkily, but also completely serious. Edward smiled in response.

"Thanks Dad," she whispered before quickly rising from her seat and crossing the room to hug him tightly. "Just be patient ok? I'm here, and I'm safe. Please just remember that when you hear the rest of this, ok?"

"Yeah, ok Bells."

"Um, Bella?" Carlisle spoke hesitantly, unsure if he was interrupting this very serious and very emotional family moment with her father, "Should I continue? I think we are almost finished with the chapter…"

"Yeah, go ahead," she replied, still held in her father's arms, "Everything is going to be ok now I think."

 ** _"I don't know," I responded. "I never spoke to him."_**

 ** _"He's a weird guy." Mike lingered by me instead of heading to the dressing room. "If I were lucky enough to sit by you, I would have talked to you."_**

 ** _I smiled at him before walking through the girls' locker room door. He was friendly and clearly admiring. But it wasn't enough to ease my irritation._**

 ** _The Gym teacher, Coach Clapp, found me a uniform but didn't make me dress down for today's class. At home, only two years of P.E. were required. Here, P.E. was mandatory all four years. Forks was literally my personal hell on Earth._**

'Not anymore' Bella thought to herself. She really hated how negative she had been back then, and was embarrassed to have her whole family hearing her complain about such mundane things as overly-friendly classmates and rain. 'I have much bigger problems now.'

 ** _I watched four volleyball games running simultaneously. Remembering how many injuries I had sustained - and inflicted - playing volleyball, I felt faintly nauseated._**

 ** _The final bell rang at last. I walked slowly to the office to return my paperwork. The rain had drifted away, but the wind was strong, and colder. I wrapped my arms around myself._**

 ** _When I walked into the warm office, I almost turned around and walked back out._**

"Anyone else would have," Edward remarked.

"Well I'm not anyone else, and I didn't so…" Bella replied. She had damn near gotten herself killed so many times in those first few months in Forks, and looking back at it now, there were so many times that she could have, and probably should have, walked away. But now it was far too late for that and she knew it. She was bound by love, loyalty, and family, and she could never ever walk away now. She just prayed that the Cullens all felt the same way about her…

"You really do have no instinct for self-preservation at all, do you?" Edward jokingly asked in response, his comment ringing with the slightly frustrated humor of an often repeated conversation.

"You would know." Bella answered quietly enough her father right next to her could not hear.

 ** _Edward Cullen stood at the desk in front of me. I recognized again that tousled bronze hair. He didn't appear to notice the sound of my entrance. I stood pressed against the back wall, waiting for the receptionist to be free._**

 ** _He was arguing with her in a low, attractive voice. I quickly picked up the gist of the argument. He was trying to trade from sixth-hour Biology to another time - any other time._**

 ** _I just couldn't believe that this was about me. It had to be something else, something that happened before I entered the Biology room. The look on his face must have been about another aggravation entirely. It was impossible that this stranger could take such a sudden, intense dislike to me._**

 ** _The door opened again, and the cold wind suddenly gusted through the room, rustling the papers on the desk, swirling my hair around my face._**

"Oh no," Alice squeaked, suddenly alarmed. Apparently Edward had not mentioned this particular instance of almost killing me when he had spoken to them.

"Relax Alice," Bella spoke as calmly as she could, given the circumstances, "I'm here, alive, and totally fine. Edward is here, totally fine. There is nothing to worry about, ok?"

"Yeah," she replied lamely, her eyes still wide, "Right, ok."

 ** _The girl who came in merely stepped to the desk, placed a note in the wire basket, and walked out again. But Edward Cullen's back stiffened, and he turned slowly to glare at me - his face was absurdly handsome - with piercing, hate-filled eyes. For an instant, I felt a thrill of genuine fear, raising the hair on my arms. The look only lasted a second, but it chilled me more than the freezing wind._**

"So you were afraid of me then?" Edward asked, genuinely curious once again.

"No," Bella answered.

Now everyone was confused again. Sam spoke up for the first time in ages, "But you just said…" he began, clearly wanting to contradict her, but she cut him off.

"I felt fear, sure," she said, trying to find the words to explain, "But I was never really afraid of him, or of any of them. I have had a lot of different reasons to feel fear when it comes to Edward. I've been afraid that he wouldn't return my feelings for him. I've been terrified that he would lose interest and leave," he visibly gulped at her words, and his siblings glared at him murderously, reminding him of his promise never to hurt her that way, "I've feared him being hurt. I've worried about disappointing him, or hurting him, or putting him in danger," everyone in the know scoffed at that, "But I have never really been afraid of him, even if I knew I might have had reason to."

"And in that moment?" Paul asked, still trying to wrap his head around all the new information. The human girl was afraid of endangering her vampire lover? What the hell had happened in the last year? None of it made sense.

"I was afraid that Forks was going to be like Phoenix all over again," she answered, slightly embarrassed, "I never had many friends there. I never fit in anywhere, and I was regarded as a loser and a freak by pretty much everyone my age. Edward's reactions that first day were like so many of the bullies on the football team back in Phoenix who had made my life a living hell. I was afraid. Just not of Edward. I was afraid that I was somehow making the same mistakes I had there, and I was going to ruin any small chance of happiness that I had here."

"You do know that makes very little sense, don't you?" Rosalie commented. She hadn't done anything to Edward to cause his reaction, so why would she be afraid that she was messing up because he was being an ass?

"Since when do I make any sense?" Bella half-joked, trying to bring back the elusive light mood the room had found earlier. Jasper noticed and did what he could to help lift everyone's spirits.

 ** _He turned back to the receptionist._**

 ** _"Never mind, then," he said hastily in a voice like velvet. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." And he turned on his heel without another look at me, and disappeared out the door._**

 ** _I went meekly to the desk, my face white for once instead of red, and handed her the signed slip._**

 ** _"How did your first day go, dear?" the receptionist asked maternally._**

 ** _"Fine," I lied, my voice weak. She didn't look convinced._**

 ** _When I got to the truck, it was almost the last car in the lot. It seemed like a haven, already the closest thing to home I had in this damp green hole. I sat inside for a while, just staring out the windshield blankly. But soon I was cold enough to need the heater, so I turned the key and the engine roared to life. I headed back to Charlie's house, fighting tears the whole way there._**

"I'm so sorry, love," Edward said, solemnly.

"Not your fault," came her retort, "I should be thanking you for reacting the way you did."

"Um," Charlie began, reminding them all that he was still there, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Yeah Bells," Jacob cut in, and everyone suddenly realized that he was also still present, and completely out of the loop, "That makes no sense."

"Both of you just trust me please," she pleaded with them, "I explain everything in the book in time, and it will make a lot more sense if you just let things be revealed in the same way that they were originally."

"Fine," Charlie grumbled, "But I'm reading next. No more breaks until we get through a serious chunk of this book."

Carlisle turned the page to the start of the next chapter, and was about to hand it to Charlie, when something fell from the book, something that had clearly been tucked into the page.

A letter in S.M.'s distinctive handwriting. Addressed to Bella Swan…


	6. Chapter 6 Wise Words

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 ** _Chapter 6 – Wise Words from Our Mysterious Friend_**

Carlisle retrieved the letter from the place it had settled on the floor in front of him and handed it to Bella, while simultaneously passing Twilight to Charlie.

Bella unfolded the parchment and began reading silently to herself, trying hard to keep her face from showing any emotion as she did, though she knew Jasper, and by extension Edward, wouldn't be fooled. Only once she finished did she look up at everyone gathered around her.

"What does it say?" Billy asked.

"I suppose I might as well read it aloud," Bella mused, looking back down at the page, and began to read.

 ** _Darling Bella,_**

 ** _I know this experience has been taxing on you, more so than the others. They are all in varying stages of irritation and confusion, but they are ultimately fueled by curiosity and self-interest. For them, at least for now, this whole exercise is about learning as much as they can about their future and their enemies, and about you as well. I'm sure they are asking a million questions and digging for information you simply cannot share yet, and for this I am sorry. I am baring your heart and soul to them, and I never asked for your say in any of this, something for which I hope one day you can forgive me, but this was the only way. And I am ultimately doing all of this for you, and those you love._**

 ** _I know it probably seems daunting to you now, having only read one full chapter in a book with dozens, and knowing all the things that have happened in the last year that we have yet to share with them, but you can do this. You are the strongest person I have ever known, and even though you don't know me yet, there will come a time when you trust me with everything and everyone you hold dear, so please trust in this now._**

 ** _I hope that the Cullens and the Quileutes have kept from killing each other thus far. I know how temperamental some of those men can be, and I don't envy you, or Jasper, having to play referee in that room right now. But like I said, there is no one stronger than you, and I have the utmost faith in your ability to keep everyone calm and alive through this whole experience. And it will be worth it in the end._**

 ** _Good luck my sister. You always seem to need it._**

 ** _With love always,_**

 ** _S.M._**

 ** _P.S. – Tell Charlie to stay strong. He was always meant to be a part of this world, and this life, and his lack of involvement may well have been the root cause of much of your heartache over the years. Share this with him, and always keep him close. Family is everything, and it will be the driving force in your life no matter how you choose to proceed. Just remind him, and the others, to be patient. Everything will be revealed in time._**

"That was very insightful," Carlisle commented as she finished. She simply nodded in response, folding the letter neatly and setting it on the table in front of her.

"I really want to know who this S.M. is," Edward began, voicing what the entire room was clearly thinking. "He or she seems to care quite a lot about you Bella. Are you certain you don't know who it is?"

"I don't," her voice was strong and sure. She didn't have a clue who they were, and she had all of the same questions as the others, "She even said so herself. But I would say it is safe to assume that she was very close to me indeed. She refers to me as her sister, and she obviously knows everything about my life through her gift."

"Do you guys think she will reveal her identity when we finish the books?" Alice asked, hating that she could not see what was going to happen. She suspected that had something to do with the presence of the werewolves, though she couldn't be sure. Either way, she didn't like feeling blind.

"Don't worry Ali," Jasper assured her, feeling her apprehension and trying to soothe her with his own gift, "I don't know who S.M. is, and I don't like the idea of them knowing about all of us, but I think everything is going to work out for the best in the end."

This sort of optimism was unusual from Jasper. His violent past had taught him to always be wary of the dangers of the world, and he was usually so suspicious of strangers, especially if they knew too much about his family. Today, though, he needed to be strong for his wife, so he was willing to put aside his own fears in order to ease hers.

"Should we continue reading the story?" Esme asked gently, very much wanting to hear what happened next, but also now realizing that this entire situation was indeed a massive invasion of Bella's privacy, so she was now weary to continue.

Sensing her adoptive-mother's concern, and seeing the glancing she was receiving from the rest of her friends and family, Bella deduced the question was meant for her. "I suppose that we must," she answered, trying not to sound as uncomfortable as she truly was, "We were given this for a reason, and as much as I don't like it, if reading this will help all of us to avoid whatever dangers are coming, then we must. We cannot ignore such an opportunity."

"If you're sure, love?" Edward confirmed.

She nodded eagerly, "It might even be fun for me to see your reactions," she noted playfully, trying to lighten the mood, but also genuinely interested in how he would react to hearing more of her thoughts, "Go on Charlie," she urged her father, who still held the book open in his lap.

"Alright then," he said and began, "Chapter 2…"

 ** _OPEN BOOK_**

 ** _The next day was better... and worse._**

One line in and Edward was already being bombarded by the amused, yet confused thoughts of everyone in the room. Everyone of course, except for Bella, the one person who knew what she had meant by such a convoluted statement. He sighed at their overlapping internal questioning, but no one spoke. After hearing S.M.'s letter, they were all going to make an effort to simply listen to the story and not ask Bella so many questions.

But if she continued to think in such confusing circles and contradicting statements that likely wouldn't last long.

 ** _It was better because it wasn't raining yet, though the clouds were dense and opaque. It was easier because I knew what to expect of my day. Mike came to sit by me in English, and walked me to my next class, with Chess Club Eric glaring at him all the while; that was nattering. People didn't look at me quite as much as they had yesterday. I sat with a big group at lunch that included Mike, Eric, Jessica, and several other people whose names and faces I now remembered. I began to feel like I was treading water, instead of drowning in it_**

 ** _It was worse because I was tired; I still couldn't sleep with the wind echoing around the house. It was worse because Mr. Varner called on me in Trig when my hand wasn't raised and I had the wrong answer. It was miserable because I had to play volleyball, and the one time I didn't cringe out of the way of the ball, I hit my teammate in the head with it._**

 ** _And it was worse because Edward Cullen wasn't in school at all._**

'Awww, she missed you already' Emmett teased his brother in his mind, but continued to keep quiet like everyone else for Bella's sake, though most of the Cullens were hiding small smiles.

 ** _All morning I was dreading lunch, fearing his bizarre glares. Part of me wanted to confront him and demand to know what his problem was. While I was lying sleepless in my bed, I even imagined what I would say. But I knew myself too well to think I would really have the guts to do it. I made the Cowardly Lion look like the terminator._**

Emmett and Paul both chuckled at the mental image this conjured up, but kept their playful teasing comments to themselves.

 ** _But when I walked into the cafeteria with Jessica - trying to keep my eyes from sweeping the place for him, and failing entirely - I saw that his four siblings of sorts were sitting together at the same table, and he was not with them._**

"Where were you?" Charlie couldn't help himself from asking, looking at Edward with an expression halfway between confused and irritated.

"Visiting old family friends up North," Edward answered vaguely, "I'm sure everything will be explained later. It wouldn't make much sense now."

His comment was satisfactory for Charlie, but it had the wolves concerned. Old family friends? More vampires nearby? Allies of the Cullens? They didn't like not having accurate numbers for a possible threat to their people.

 ** _Mike intercepted us and steered us to his table. Jessica seemed elated by the attention, and her friends quickly joined us. But as I tried to listen to their easy chatter, I was terribly uncomfortable, waiting nervously for the moment he would arrive. I hoped that he would simply ignore me when he came, and prove my suspicions false._**

 ** _He didn't come, and as time passed I grew more and more tense._**

'I know' Jasper thought, remembering the wave of intense anxiety that had been coming off of her that day, 'I could have cut the tension in the cafeteria with a knife'. Edward frowned at his brother's thoughts, realizing for the first time how much discomfort he had caused with his little disappearing act.

 ** _I walked to Biology with more confidence when, by the end of lunch, he still hadn't showed. Mike, who was taking on the qualities of a golden retriever, walked faithfully by my side to class._**

This elicited a round of laughter from all the men in the room.

"What?" Bella defended unphased, "I was starting to feel like I had a shadow, falling me around everywhere I went."

 ** _I held my breath at the door, but Edward Cullen wasn't there, either. I exhaled and went to my seat. Mike followed, talking about an upcoming trip to the beach. He lingered by my desk till the bell rang. Then he smiled at me wistfully and went to sit by a girl with braces and a bad perm. It looked like I was going to have to do something about Mike, and it wouldn't be easy. In a town like this, where everyone lived on top of everyone else, diplomacy was essential. I had never been enormously tactful; I had no practice dealing with overly friendly boys._**

 ** _I was relieved that I had the desk to myself, that Edward was absent. I told myself that repeatedly. But I couldn't get rid of the nagging suspicion that I was the reason he wasn't there. It was ridiculous, and egotistical, to think that I could affect anyone that strongly. It was impossible. And yet I couldn't stop worrying that it was true._**

"And unfortunately, I was right," Bella muttered to herself, too low for the humans to hear. The wolves however did hear, and exchanged a pointed look at her comment. A look which did not go unnoticed by Bella. How had they heard her? Was it possible they weren't precisely normal either?

 ** _When the school day was finally done, and the blush was fading out of my cheeks from the volleyball incident, I changed quickly back into my jeans and navy blue sweater. I hurried from the girls' locker room, pleased to find that I had successfully evaded my retriever friend for the moment. I walked swiftly out to the parking lot. It was crowded now with fleeing students. I got in my truck and dug through my bag to make sure I had what I needed._**

 ** _Last night I'd discovered that Charlie couldn't cook much besides fried eggs and bacon. So I requested that I be assigned kitchen detail for the duration of my stay. He was willing enough to hand over the keys to the banquet hall. I also found out that he had no food in the house. So I had my shopping list and the cash from the jar in the cupboard labeled FOOD MONEY, and I was on my way to the Thriftway._**

"I still have no idea how you didn't starve to death before she came along and saved you," Billy teased his old friend, laughing.

"Honestly," Charlie replied, laughing as well, "I ate at the diner. A lot."

 ** _I gunned my deafening engine to life, ignoring the heads that turned in my direction, and backed carefully into a place in the line of cars that were waiting to exit the parking lot. As I waited, trying to pretend that the earsplitting rumble was coming from someone else's car, I saw the two Cullens and the Hale twins getting into their car. It was the shiny new Volvo. Of course. I hadn't noticed their clothes before_**

"What?!" Alice exclaimed, outraged, to the great amusement of the rest of the Cullens and Bella. "You didn't notice the clothes, at all?! You know how much time and energy I put into making sure we all look good, and you never even noticed?!" Bella was sure if it were possible her face would be bright red, and steam would be coming from her ears.

Laughing at her mental image of a fuming Alice, Bella replied with mock innocence, "I'm sorry Ali. I know now how much it means to you. When the books are finished, you and I can go shopping to make it up to you, ok?"

Suddenly the vampire was no longer angry. In fact, she was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh Bella, thank you thank you thank you! I hope you don't think I'll forget. I'm going to have so much fun. Oh, I can see it now, you'll…"

"Alice, breathe," Bella cut her off, "Later, ok?"

"Yeah, ok. Let's keep reading. I want to know how you can possibly justify never noticing our clothes."

Everyone laughed at the expression on her face, and then Charlie began again.

 ** _I'd been too mesmerized by their faces. Now that I looked, it was obvious that they were all dressed exceptionally well; simply, but in clothes that subtly hinted at designer origins. With their remarkable good looks, the style with which they carried themselves, they could have worn dishrags and pulled it off. It seemed excessive for them to have both looks and money. But as far as I could tell, life worked that way most of the time. It didn't look as if it bought them any acceptance here._**

 ** _No, I didn't fully believe that. The isolation must be their desire; I couldn't imagine any door that wouldn't be opened by that degree of beauty._**

 ** _They looked at my noisy truck as I passed them, just like everyone else. I kept my eyes straight forward and was relieved when I finally was free of the school grounds._**

 ** _The Thriftway was not far from the school, just a few streets south, off the highway. It was nice to be inside the supermarket; it felt normal. I did the shopping at home, and I fell into the pattern of the familiar task gladly. The store was big enough inside that I couldn't hear the tapping of the rain on the roof to remind me where I was._**

 ** _When I got home, I unloaded all the groceries, stuffing them in wherever I could find an open space. I hoped Charlie wouldn't mind. I wrapped potatoes in foil and stuck them in the oven to bake, covered a steak in marinade and balanced it on top of a carton of eggs in the fridge._**

 ** _When I was finished with that, I took my book bag upstairs. Before starting my homework, I changed into a pair of dry sweats, pulled my damp hair up into a pony-tail, and checked my e-mail for the first time. I had three messages._**

 ** _"Bella," my mom wrote..._**

 ** _Write me as soon as you get in. Tell me how your flight was. Is it raining? I miss you already. I'm almost finished packing for Florida, but I can't find my pink blouse. Do you know where I put it? Phil says hi. Mom._**

 ** _I sighed and went to the next. It was sent eight hours after the first._**

 ** _"Bella," she wrote..._**

 ** _Why haven't you e-mailed me yet? What are you waiting for? Mom._**

 ** _The last was from this morning._**

 ** _Isabella,_**

 ** _If I haven't heard from you by 5:30 p.m. today I'm calling Charlie._**

 ** _I checked the clock. I still had an hour, but my mom was well known for jumping the gun._**

 ** _Mom,_**

 ** _Calm down. I'm writing right now. Don't do anything rash._**

 ** _Bella._**

 ** _I sent that, and began again._**

 ** _Mom,_**

 ** _Everything is great. Of course it's raining. I was waiting for something to write about. School isn't bad, just a little repetitive. I met some nice kids who sit by me at lunch._**

 ** _Your blouse is at the dry cleaners - you were supposed to pick it up Friday._**

 ** _Charlie bought me a truck, can you believe it? I love it. It's old, but really sturdy, which is good, you know, for me._**

 ** _I miss you, too. I'll write again soon, but I'm not going to check my e-mail every five minutes. Relax, breathe. I love you._**

 ** _Bella._**

"You weren't kidding about your mother," Edward commented, trying to stifle a laugh. Renee really was an interesting character to be sure.

 ** _I had decided to read Wuthering Heights - the novel we were currently studying in English - yet again for the fun of it, and that's what I was doing when Charlie came home. I'd lost track of the time, and I hurried downstairs to take the potatoes out and put the steak in to broil._**

 ** _"Bella?" my father called out when he heard me on the stairs._**

 ** _Who else? I thought to myself._**

 ** _"Hey, Dad, welcome home."_**

 ** _"Thanks." He hung up his gun belt and stepped out of his boots as I bustled about the kitchen. As far as I was aware, he'd never shot the gun on the job. But he kept it ready. When I came here as a child, he would always remove the bullets as soon as he walked in the door. I guess he considered me old enough now not to shoot myself by accident, and not depressed enough to shoot myself on purpose._**

"Well that's morbid," Paul commented dryly, wondering silently if Charlie was rethinking that now that he was hearing how upset Bella was when she first arrived here.

"Personal thoughts," Bella sighed, "It was a snarky side note that I never would have said out loud. And I had no way of knowing someone would publish it later." Her words were reminiscent of the letter and had everyone thoughtful yet again.

 ** _"What's for dinner?" he asked warily. My mother was an imaginative cook, and her experiments weren't always edible. I was surprised, and sad, that he seemed to remember that far back._**

 ** _"Steak and potatoes," I answered, and he looked relieved._**

 ** _He seemed to feel awkward standing in the kitchen doing nothing; he lumbered into the living room to watch TV while I worked. We were both more comfortable that way. I made a salad while the steaks cooked, and set the table._**

 ** _I called him in when dinner was ready, and he sniffed appreciatively as he walked into the room._**

 ** _"Smells good, Bell."_**

 ** _"Thanks."_**

 ** _We ate in silence for a few minutes. It wasn't uncomfortable. Neither of us was bothered by the quiet. In some ways, we were well suited for living together._**

"I really am glad you came to stay with me," Charlie said, softly, looking at his daughter. He didn't like the idea of her in danger, or that her life had apparently become incredibly mysterious and secretive right under his nose, but he was still glad to have her here, and he never wanted to have to let her go.

Edward smiled gently at the man's kind thoughts. "We are too Charlie. We are too."


	7. Chapter 7 Open Book Part 2

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 7 – Open Book Part 2**

Charlie continued to read, as the Cullens, Quileutes, and Bella all listened intently. Jasper found himself surprised at how light the emotions in the room had started to become. There was still a heavy wall of suspicion coming from the wolves, and a lot of confusion, especially coming from poor Jacob Black, but overall it was much calmer now.

Bella's speech to her father, along with S.M.'s latest letter had everyone thoughtful and interested, rather than angry and fearful. It was a pleasant change and Jasper was extremely thankful for it.

 ** _"So, how did you like school? Have you made any friends?" he asked as he was taking seconds._**

 ** _"Well, I have a few classes with a girl named Jessica. I sit with her friends at lunch. And there's this boy, Mike, who's very friendly. Everybody seems pretty nice." With one outstanding exception._**

"I'm so sorry, love," Edward uttered, feeling horrible for how he had treated Bella back then, and how much it had clearly bothered her, even then.

"Don't be," she quickly reassured him, projecting nothing but love and forgiveness, which Jasper quickly sent to Edward in turn, "You know I just didn't understand back then. Don't blame yourself for my ignorance." He looked as if he was about to interrupt, probably to defend her intelligence, but she continued on without missing a beat, "I know now. And I understand. And I love you all the more for it. So stop feeling guilty, please."

"Alright Bella," he answered softly, squeezing her hand in his own.

Charlie was still confused, along with most everyone in the room, with the obvious exception of the Cullens, but he didn't question his daughter. She had asked him to trust her, and he would, even if he didn't like all the secrets. So he simply cleared his throat quietly and began reading again.

 ** _"That must be Mike Newton. Nice kid - nice family. His dad owns the sporting goods store just outside of town. He makes a good living off all the backpackers who come through here."_**

"Hey Bells?" Jake piped in, having been very quiet for a long time, "Isn't that where you work now?"

"Yeah Jake," she replied, smiling. It was a simple question that wouldn't lead to any dark secrets or cryptic comments and so it didn't make her feel uncomfortable like some of the other seemed to, "Mike can be a real thorn in my side sometimes, but he's a good guy. And his parents have been good to me while I've been working there. You were right about that Charlie; The Newton's are good people."

She couldn't help but add in that last bit, remembering who her father was about to defend next. He really was a fairly good judge of character most of the time. Cop instincts she guessed. And she wanted the Quileutes in the room to know that when they were about to hear their friend defend a family of vampires they clearly mistrusted.

 ** _"Do you know the Cullen family?" I asked hesitantly._**

 ** _"Dr. Cullen's family? Sure. Dr. Cullen's a great man."_**

'Why, thank you Charlie' Carlisle thought, surprised. He respected the police chief, and he had come to like the man as Bella's father, but he didn't really know him all that well, so it was a surprise to hear Charlie speaking highly of him.

Edward smiled at his thoughts and silently thanked Charlie for doing so. He could only imagine how different things might have been if Bella had asked Billy that question instead.

 ** _"They... the kids... are a little different. They don't seem to fit in very well at school."_**

 ** _Charlie surprised me by looking angry._**

'I wasn't angry at you' Charlie commented silently, remembering his fight with Billy about the Cullen family. Edward was thoroughly surprised at the conflict their presence had caused between the two men, lifelong friends.

 ** _"People in this town," he muttered. "Dr. Cullen is a brilliant surgeon who could probably work in any hospital in the world, make ten times the salary he gets here," he continued, getting louder. "We're lucky to have him - lucky that his wife wanted to live in a small town. He's an asset to the community, and all of those kids are well behaved and polite. I had my doubts, when they first moved in, with all those adopted teenagers. I thought we might have some problems with them. But they're all very mature - I haven't had one speck of trouble from any of them. That's more than I can say for the children of some folks who have lived in this town for generations. And they stick together the way a family should - camping trips every other weekend... Just because they're newcomers, people have to talk."_**

Charlie couldn't help himself. He was getting irritated all over again, even more so than he had that day. The Cullens weren't just good people who happened to live in town anymore. They were his daughter's closest friends. Hell, she and Edward were clearly in love, no matter how much he resisted that thought as a father.

No man ever looked forward to watching their only child, their only daughter, grow up and fall in love, but it was undeniable that was what was happening. And so reading his own words again, with a new, greater respect for Edward and his family, he was growing red with anger and frustration.

"I'm sorry," Charlie muttered, trying to reign in his emotions. He set Twilight down in his lap as he shot Billy a look that clearly said he was the cause of this frustration.

Billy looked as if he was about to defend himself, or maybe try to explain, again, why the Cullens were not to be trusted, but his son surprised everyone by speaking first, "Don't be," he said, sounding almost as irritated as Charlie had, "My dad can be more than a little pushy with his superstitions, and I know you two have fought about the Cullens before. No matter who," 'or what', he added silently, "they are, they're still a part of your community, and your daughter's life. You're allowed to be upset."

Bella was smiling at Jake. That was the guy she knew and loved like a brother. They had grown up together, spending summers here in Forks for years, while their fathers fished endlessly. She was glad he hadn't lost his convictions. He really was a good guy, and she knew they could be close friends again someday, even if she suspected his feelings for her might differ from those she harbored for him.

Everyone else, however, was staring at him like he had just grown three heads. Here was Jacob Black, future alpha of the pack and chief of the tribe, criticizing his father, the current chief, and defending a bunch of leeches.

"What?" he demanded, staring straight at Sam. He didn't like Uley, never had. And the look he was giving him in that moment, that mix of disbelief and disappointment, was beyond obnoxious.

Sam wanted to tell the baby Alpha that he was a moron. He wanted to set him straight. The Cullens were not people. They were cold, dead monsters, and nothing they saw or heard here today would change that.

Edward growled quietly at the turn in Sam's thoughts, which was silently echoed by Paul, Jared, and the tribe elders. He was furious, and was having some equally prejudiced thoughts about the disrespectful mutts sitting in their home.

'Well there went the good mood' Jasper commented silently, focusing on forcing down the growing hostility.

Sensing Edward's anger, Bella placed her hand firmly against his chest. He looked down at her, ceasing his growling, his eyes softening from the death glare they had held for Sam and the other wolves. They seemed to be having a silent conversation as they gazed into each other's eyes for a moment, before Bella sighed, breaking the contact and grabbing the book from her father's lap.

"That's enough of that," she stately calmly, her eyes drifting around the room quickly, silently telling everyone to knock it off, "I'll read for a bit. We can all fight about our serious trust issues later." She muttered the last part too low for the humans to hear, knowing the Cullens, and she suspected Sam, Paul, and Jared, would still hear her just fine. It was meant for them anyway.

 ** _It was the longest speech I'd ever heard Charlie make. He must feel strongly about whatever people were saying._**

 ** _I backpedaled. "They seemed nice enough to me. I just noticed they kept to themselves. They're all very attractive," I added, trying to be more complimentary._**

"Understatement of the century," Bella joked, laughing lightly, and looking up at Edward with absolute adoration and love.

And just like that, everyone had relaxed. It wasn't Jasper. He had been struggling to keep a lid on the room through the whole conversation, but with a few words and a small laugh, Bella had filled the room with ease and calm. How the hell was she doing that?

 ** _"You should see the doctor," Charlie said, laughing. "It's a good thing he's happily married. A lot of the nurses at the hospital have a hard time concentrating on their work with him around."_**

Esme raised her brow, looking at her husband with amusement in her eyes, and they both laughed lightly.

 _ **We lapsed back into silence as we finished eating. He cleared the table while I started on the dishes. He went back to the TV, and after I finished washing the dishes by hand - no dishwasher - I went upstairs unwillingly to work on my math homework. I could feel a tradition in the making. That night it was finally quiet. I fell asleep quickly, exhausted.**_

 ** _The rest of the week was uneventful. I got used to the routine of my classes. By Friday I was able to recognize, if not name, almost all the students at school. In Gym, the kids on my team learned not to pass me the ball and to step quickly in front of me if the other team tried to take advantage of my weakness. I happily stayed out of their way._**

 ** _Edward Cullen didn't come back to school._**

"It's strange how aware you were of him back then," Carlisle commented, intrigued. "You didn't know him. You'd never even really spoken to each other. Yet you were hyperaware of his absence and thinking of him. I wonder…" He trailed off thoughtfully, but continued his musingly internally, much to Edward's amusement. It seems his father thought Bella had felt the mating pull even before he had, that she somehow knew he was important to her even before they really met properly.

"I could hardly help that," Bella responded quietly, blushing profusely.

"It's alright, love," Edward assured her, "I was thinking of you as well while I was away." He didn't need to mention that at the time he considered her a demon sent purely to torture him, or that he was seriously contemplating killing her. He suddenly found himself immensely grateful that it was not his point of view S.M. had decided to share their story in. That would have been disastrous.

Pushing those thoughts away, he lightly kissed the top of Bella's head and she continued to read.

 ** _Every day, I watched anxiously until the rest of the Cullens entered the cafeteria without him. Then I could relax and join in the lunchtime conversation. Mostly it centered around a trip to the La Push Ocean Park in two weeks that Mike was putting together. I was invited, and I had agreed to go, more out of politeness than desire. Beaches should be hot and dry._**

 ** _By Friday I was perfectly comfortable entering my Biology class, no longer worried that Edward would be there. For all I knew, he had dropped out of school. I tried not to think about him, but I couldn't totally suppress the worry that I was responsible for his continued absence, ridiculous as it seemed._**

 ** _My first weekend in Forks passed without incident._**

"Thank God for small miracles," Emmett commented dryly. 'Can you imagine all the trouble our Bella could have gotten herself into while Edward was out of town and no one was keeping an eye on her?'

Bella laughed, to the surprise of all the Cullens, and the wolves. That comment had been far too quiet for the other humans in the room to hear and yet she seemed to be responding to it. Had she heard? Or did she simply also find it amusing for some reason that she had survived the weekend without any notable catastrophes?

 ** _Charlie, unused to spending time in the usually empty house, worked most of the weekend. I cleaned the house, got ahead on my homework, and wrote my mom more bogusly cheerful e-mails. I did drive to the library Saturday, but it was so poorly stocked that I didn't bother to get a card; I would have to make a date to visit Olympia or Seattle soon and find a good bookstore. I wondered idly what kind of gas mileage the truck got... and shuddered at the thought._**

Bella couldn't help but chuckle when she looked up at saw the expression of disgust and terror on Jacob's face at the mention of books and libraries. That boy really didn't like to read did he?

 ** _The rain stayed soft over the weekend, quiet, so I was able to sleep well._**

 ** _People greeted me in the parking lot Monday morning. I didn't know all their names, but I waved back and smiled at everyone. It was colder this morning, but happily not raining. In English, Mike took his accustomed seat by my side. We had a pop quiz on Wuthering Heights. It was straightforward, very easy._**

"I doubt anyone else in the room thought it was easy," Jacob grumbled, still unnerved by Bella's apparent love of old books, much to the amusement of Quil Sr. Bella just smiled, shaking her head at him, and continued on.

 ** _All in all, I was feeling a lot more comfortable than I had thought I would feel by this point. More comfortable than I had ever expected to feel here._**

 ** _When we walked out of class, the air was full of swirling bits of white. I could hear people shouting excitedly to each other. The wind bit at my cheeks, my nose._**

 ** _"Wow," Mike said. "It's snowing."_**

 ** _I looked at the little cotton fluffs that were building up along the sidewalk and swirling erratically past my face._**

 ** _"Ew." Snow. There went my good day._**

Again everyone in the room, this time including most of the Cullens, looked at Bella as if she were mentally unstable. The snow was beautiful, and fun, and exciting. And she had reacted as if someone had just ruined her day.

"I know, I know," she grumbled, only slightly annoyed, "My brain doesn't work quite right, and I don't think or act like anyone expects. Don't worry, Mike was just as surprised."

 ** _He looked surprised. "Don't you like snow?"_**

 ** _"No. That means it's too cold for rain." Obviously. "Besides, I thought it was supposed to come down in flakes - you know, each one unique and all that. These just look like the ends of Q-tips."_**

 ** _"Haven't you ever seen snow fall before?" he asked incredulously._**

 ** _"Sure I have." I paused. "On TV."_**

Emmett, Paul, and Jacob all laughed at this. Then stopped abruptly, looked at each other and then away uncomfortably, which of course caused Bella to start laughing at them. Soon enough most of the room was giggling like little school girls.

Jasper could not understand the incredible shift in emotions in the room. The joke had not been that funny, at all, but the vampire, wolf, human moment afterwards had greatly amused Bella, and it was suddenly as if everyone in the room could feel her amusement. Was she projecting somehow? Or were her emotions just so pleasant and strong that Jasper was spreading them around accidentally?

 ** _Mike laughed. And then a big, squishy ball of dripping snow smacked into the back of his head. We both turned to see where it came from. I had my suspicions about Eric, who was walking away, his back toward us - in the wrong direction for his next class. Mike apparently had the same notion. He bent over and began scraping together a pile of the white mush._**

 ** _"I'll see you at lunch, okay?" I kept walking as I spoke. "Once people start throwing wet stuff, I go inside."_**

 ** _He just nodded, his eyes on Eric's retreating figure._**

 ** _Throughout the morning, everyone chattered excitedly about the snow; apparently it was the first snowfall of the new year. I kept my mouth shut. Sure, it was drier than rain - until it melted in your socks._**

 ** _I walked alertly to the cafeteria with Jessica after Spanish. Mush balls were flying everywhere. I kept a binder in my hands, ready to use it as a shield if necessary. Jessica thought I was hilarious, but something in my expression kept her from lobbing a snowball at me herself._**

 ** _Mike caught up to us as we walked in the doors, laughing, with ice melting the spikes in his hair. He and Jessica were talking animatedly about the snow fight as we got in line to buy food. I glanced toward that table in the corner out of habit. And then I froze where I stood._**

 ** _There were five people at the table._**

"So," Edward started lamely when Bella paused dramatically and looked up at him, "I'm ba-ack" he finished in his best imitation "Independence Day", causing Bella to laugh, and breaking the tension in that had suddenly popped back up in the room.

 ** _Jessica pulled on my arm._**

 ** _"Hello? Bella? What do you want?"_**

 ** _I looked down; my ears were hot. I had no reason to feel self-conscious, I reminded myself. I hadn't done anything wrong._**

 ** _"What's with Bella?" Mike asked Jessica._**

 ** _"Nothing," I answered. "I'll just get a soda today." I caught up to the end of the line._**

 ** _"Aren't you hungry?" Jessica asked._**

 ** _"Actually, I feel a little sick," I said, my eyes still on the floor._**

"I guess you weren't thrilled to see me," Edward muttered, visibly upset, "I suppose I deserved that for how I acted the day we met."

Jasper could feel his regret and sorrow and pushed a bit of it to Bella so she would know he was sorry for how he had behaved, even if it wasn't actually his fault.

Bella looked at Jasper and nodded, letting him know he understood, but she smiled and actually laughed quietly as she turned back to Edward, confusing Jasper.

"It wasn't that," she said, explaining, "I thought you hated me, that you would be angry to see me. So I was super nervous."

Now it was Edward's turn to laugh, pulling Bella tightly to his side and kissing the top of her head affectionately, "You had no reason to be."

 ** _I waited for them to get their food, and then followed them to a table, my eyes on my feet._**

 ** _I sipped my soda slowly, my stomach churning. Twice Mike asked, with unnecessary concern, how I was feeling. I told him it was nothing, but I was wondering if I should play it up and escape to the nurse's office for the next hour. Ridiculous. I shouldn't have to run away. I decided to permit myself one glance at the Cullen family's table. If he was glaring at me, I would skip Biology, like the coward I was._**

 ** _I kept my head down and glanced up under my lashes. None of them were looking this way. I lifted my head a little. They were laughing. Edward, Jasper, and Emmett all had their hair entirely saturated with melting snow. Alice and Rosalie were leaning away as Emmett shook his dripping hair toward them. They were enjoying the snowy day, just like everyone else - only they looked more like a scene from a movie than the rest of us._**

Emily and Kim both giggled lightly at this, surprising everyone. They had both been completely silent for quite a while, slightly hidden behind their wolves, and honestly, most of the room had forgotten they were even there.

"That's just because they're all unbearably attractive," Kim commented, earning a smile from Bella.

"It's true," Emily continued her fellow imprint's train of thought seamlessly, "They could all be movie stars."

The elders looked just as concerned as they had when Jake had defended the Cullens earlier, and now the wolves looked like their eyes were going to pop out of their sockets.

Jasper was hit with a wave of anger, fear, and… jealousy? That had him laughing uncontrollably. The wolves, their natural born enemies, who hated them for everything they were worth, were jealous of them, because their imprints, their soulmates, who would never leave them for another no matter the circumstances, thought they were beautiful. It was just too much.

He must have been projecting his shock and amusement because the rest of the room was suddenly doubled over laughing right alongside him.

"Alright, alright," Bella cut in, trying to breathe through her own laughter, "I know, my man and his family are all gorgeous. Can I keep reading now?"

Jasper struggled to regain his calm and reign in the emotions he was pushing out, and a moment later everyone was silent, though still smiling, and she started back up where she left off.

 ** _But, aside from the laughter and playfulness, there was something different, and I couldn't quite pinpoint what that difference was. I examined Edward the most carefully. His skin was less pale, I decided - flushed from the snow fight maybe - the circles under his eyes much less noticeable. But there was something more. I pondered, staring, trying to isolate the change._**

"Very perceptive," Carlisle commented again. This might have frightened him at the time, but now he sounded almost proud of his new daughter's observation skills. She just smiled at him and continued reading.

 ** _"Bella, what are you staring at?" Jessica intruded, her eyes following my stare._**

 ** _At that precise moment, his eyes flashed over to meet mine. I dropped my head, letting my hair fall to conceal my face. I was sure, though, in the instant our eyes met, that he didn't look harsh or unfriendly as he had the last time I'd seen him. He looked merely curious again, unsatisfied in some way._**

'Unsatisfied? What was it she said before, an unmet expectation? What's that about? What was he expecting from her?' Charlie was trying to puzzle things out silently, and Edward quickly realized that he was just as quick as his daughter. He was going to put this together rather quickly if Bella continued to comment on their every glance in such detail.

 ** _"Edward Cullen is staring at you," Jessica giggled in my ear._**

 ** _"He doesn't look angry, does he?" I couldn't help asking._**

 ** _"No," she said, sounding confused by my question. "Should he be?"_**

 ** _"I don't think he likes me," I confided. I still felt queasy. I put my head down on my arm._**

 ** _"The Cullens don't like anybody... well, they don't notice anybody enough to like them. But he's still staring at you."_**

 ** _"Stop looking at him," I hissed._**

 ** _She snickered, but she looked away. I raised my head enough to make sure that she did, contemplating violence if she resisted._**

"Bella!" Esme and Charlie both chastised at precisely the same moment, causing all of the Cullen children to laugh hysterically, and Bella to blush.

"Sorry Esme," she breathed almost silently before turning to her father and continuing at a normal volume, "Jessica just has that effect on people Dad. I would never have actually done anything. I just didn't want her to make a scene in the school cafeteria."

 ** _Mike interrupted us then - he was planning an epic battle of the blizzard in the parking lot after school and wanted us to join. Jessica agreed enthusiastically. The way she looked at Mike left little doubt that she would be up for anything he suggested. I kept silent. I would have to hide in the gym until the parking lot cleared._**

 ** _For the rest of the lunch hour I very carefully kept my eyes at my own table. I decided to honor the bargain I'd made with myself. Since he didn't look angry, I would go to Biology. My stomach did frightened little flips at the thought of sitting next to him again._**

 ** _I didn't really want to walk to class with Mike as usual - he seemed to be a popular target for the snowball snipers - but when we went to the door, everyone besides me groaned in unison. It was raining, washing all traces of the snow away in clear, icy ribbons down the side of the walkway. I pulled my hood up, secretly pleased. I would be free to go straight home after Gym._**

 ** _Mike kept up a string of complaints on the way to building four._**

 ** _Once inside the classroom, I saw with relief that my table was still empty._**

'So is the bloodsucker there or not?' Paul bit back the string of internal comments filling his head. He didn't like Edward, or any of the Cullens for that matter. And even if he was trying to give Bella a chance, despite her desire to be close to these… things, he couldn't make sense of her thinking sometimes. Wasn't he just there, in the cafeteria? How could a normal, slow human beat the vampire to the classroom?

 ** _Mr. Banner was walking around the room, distributing one microscope and box of slides to each table. Class didn't start for a few minutes, and the room buzzed with conversation. I kept my eyes away from the door, doodling idly on the cover of my notebook._**

 ** _I heard very clearly when the chair next to me moved, but my eyes stayed carefully focused on the pattern I was drawing._**

 ** _"Hello," said a quiet, musical voice._**

 ** _I looked up, stunned that he was speaking to me. He was sitting as far away from me as the desk allowed, but his chair was angled toward me. His hair was dripping wet, disheveled - even so, he looked like he'd just finished shooting a commercial for hair gel. His dazzling face was friendly, open, a slight smile on his flawless lips._**

Bella was blushing scarlet again, and looked up embarrassed. It might have had something to do with talking about her boyfriends "flawless lips" in front of him, his entire family, and her father… She looked up at Edward, silently pleading for him to take the book before she could die of embarrassment.

"Why don't I read for a bit?" he offered to her relief, taking the book she offered gladly. Secretly, he just wanted to make sure she didn't edit any of her thoughts about him. He really wanted to know exactly what she thought.

 ** _But his eyes were careful._**

 ** _"My name is Edward Cullen," he continued. "I didn't have a chance to introduce myself last week. You must be Bella Swan."_**

 ** _My mind was spinning with confusion. Had I made up the whole thing? He was perfectly polite now. I had to speak; he was waiting. But I couldn't think of anything conventional to say._**

 ** _"H-how do you know my name?" I stammered._**

 ** _He laughed a soft, enchanting laugh._**

 ** _"Oh, I think everyone knows your name. The whole town's been waiting for you to arrive."_**

 ** _I grimaced. I knew it was something like that._**

 ** _"No," I persisted stupidly. "I meant, why did you call me Bella?"_**

 ** _He seemed confused. "Do you prefer Isabella?"_**

 ** _"No, I like Bella," I said. "But I think Charlie - I mean my dad - must call me Isabella behind my back - that's what everyone here seems to know me as," I tried to explain, feeling like an utter moron._**

"First mistake brother," Emmett teased. 'You clearly heard everyone referring to her as Bella in their thoughts and missed that she had to correct them all the first time they met.'

 ** _"Oh." He let it drop. I looked away awkwardly._**

 ** _Thankfully, Mr. Banner started class at that moment. I tried to concentrate as he explained the lab we would be doing today. The slides in the box were out of order. Working as lab partners, we had to separate the slides of onion root tip cells into the phases of mitosis they represented and label them accordingly. We weren't supposed to use our books. In twenty minutes, he would be coming around to see who had it right._**

 ** _"Get started," he commanded._**

 ** _"Ladies first, partner?" Edward asked. I looked up to see him smiling a crooked smile so beautiful that I could only stare at him like an idiot._**

 ** _"Or I could start, if you wish." The smile faded; he was obviously wondering if I was mentally competent._**

 ** _"No," I said, flushing. "I'll go ahead."_**

 ** _I was showing off, just a little. I'd already done this lab, and I knew what I was looking for. It should be easy. I snapped the first slide into place under the microscope and adjusted it quickly to the 40X objective. I studied the slide briefly._**

 ** _My assessment was confident. "Prophase."_**

"I was trying to impress you," Bella confessed, blushing.

 ** _"Do you mind if I look?" he asked as I began to remove the slide. His hand caught mine, to stop me, as he asked. His fingers were ice-cold, like he'd been holding them in a snowdrift before class._**

'Mistake number two' Emmett continued to jest silently. 'No wonder she figured everything out. This book reads like a bullet point list for identifying vampires in real life.'

 ** _But that wasn't why I jerked my hand away so quickly. When he touched me, it stung my hand as if an electric current had passed through us._**

"You felt that too?" Edward paused to ask her. He had thought it was only him. When he had asked Carlisle about it, he had told him it was a natural reaction to a vampire finding their mate. There should have been no way that Bella felt that.

"I didn't realize you had," Bella answered quietly, meeting his curious gaze with one of her own. What did it all mean?

 ** _"I'm sorry," he muttered, pulling his hand back immediately. However, he continued to reach for the microscope. I watched him, still staggered, as he examined the slide for an even shorter time than I had._**

 ** _"Prophase," he agreed, writing it neatly in the first space on our worksheet. He swiftly switched out the first slide for the second, and then glanced at it cursorily._**

 ** _"Anaphase," he murmured, writing it down as he spoke._**

 ** _I kept my voice indifferent. "May I?"_**

 ** _He smirked and pushed the microscope to me._**

 ** _I looked through the eyepiece eagerly, only to be disappointed. Dang it, he was right._**

"You were hoping I was wrong?" Edward teased her, since she now knew he had taken high school biology dozens of times in his long life, and with his vampire senses and perfect memory, he was essentially never wrong.

"I had no reason to doubt the possibility at the time," she replied, laughing, despite his teasing.

And again Jasper was fighting a wave of confusion from the wolves. He would have thought that one was fairly obvious. So why were they so lost?

 ** _"Slide three?" I held out my hand without looking at him._**

 ** _He handed it to me; it seemed like he was being careful not to touch my skin again._**

 ** _I took the most fleeting look I could manage._**

 ** _"Interphase." I passed him the microscope before he could ask for it. He took a swift peek, and then wrote it down. I would have written it while he looked, but his clear, elegant script intimidated me. I didn't want to spoil the page with my clumsy scrawl._**

And Bella was blushing again. Even her handwriting couldn't compare when Edward was involved. Jasper was suddenly hit with a bout of unworthiness, which he quickly eliminated and replaced with confidence and peace. He seriously needed to have a talk with Bella; there was absolutely no reason for her to be feeling that way about herself. Especially not because of something as foolish as handwriting.

 ** _We were finished before anyone else was close. I could see Mike and his partner comparing two slides again and again, and another group had their book open under the table._**

"Cheaters," Bella muttered, sounding disappointed.

"This from the girl who wanted all her old English essays mailed here from Phoenix?" Harry replied. He and the other elders were getting comfortable again. It felt like the calm before the storm to Jasper. He hoped he wouldn't have to calm everyone down again anytime soon.

"Can you really blame me?" she shot back, unphased by his question, a smile plastered on her face, "At least that is my own work. Those two, using a book in class, for such a simple lab…"

"Which you had already done before…" Jacob threw in. He had had his fair share of difficulty in Biology despite being fairly bright, and he felt for Bella's classmates.

"I wasn't the only one," Bella replied almost silently, again revealing more than she normally would have thanks to S.M.'s promise that everything would be out in the open soon anyway.

 ** _Which left me with nothing to do but try to not look at him... unsuccessfully._**

'She's checking you out again bro!' Emmett continued his unrelenting stream of silent teasing. Edward was just thankful he wasn't saying anything out loud at the moment. Bella would have been blushing even more if she could hear everything he was thinking.

 ** _I glanced up, and he was staring at me, that same inexplicable look of frustration in his eyes. Suddenly I identified that subtle difference in his face._**

 ** _"Did you get contacts?" I blurted out unthinkingly._**

 ** _He seemed puzzled by my unexpected question. "No."_**

 ** _"Oh," I mumbled. "I thought there was something different about your eyes."_**

'Dude that's mistake number three in one class period.' Emmett continued.

"Observant yet again," Carlisle breathed aloud. Bella looked at him as he spoke, again apparently hearing something she wasn't meant to. This time the wolves definitely noticed her reaction and made note of it. Was she not a normal human after all? Nothing the book had revealed so far supported her being supernatural in any way…

 ** _He shrugged, and looked away._**

 ** _In fact, I was sure there was something different. I vividly remembered the flat black color of his eyes the last time he'd glared at me - the color was striking against the background of his pale skin and his auburn hair. Today, his eyes were a completely different color: a strange ocher, darker than butterscotch, but with the same golden tone. I didn't understand how that could be, unless he was lying for some reason about the contacts. Or maybe Forks was making me crazy in the literal sense of the word._**

 ** _I looked down. His hands were clenched into hard fists again._**

 ** _Mr. Banner came to our table then, to see why we weren't working. He looked over our shoulders to glance at the completed lab, and then stared more intently to check the answers._**

 ** _"So, Edward, didn't you think Isabella should get a chance with the microscope?" Mr. Banner asked._**

"Well that was presumptuous," Charlie complained. His daughter was perfectly capable of doing her own work, and she was quite intelligent. Why would her teacher assume she hadn't contributed?

Edward, Carlisle, Esme, and surprisingly, Billy, were all nodding their agreement. No one liked Bella being disrespected that way, not even the wolves.

 ** _"Bella," Edward corrected automatically. "Actually, she identified three of the five."_**

"Thanks," Bella said, a small smile tugging at her lips. She very much enjoyed Edward defending her, even if it was just to Mr. Banner.

"Of course."

 ** _Mr. Banner looked at me now; his expression was skeptical._**

 ** _"Have you done this lab before?" he asked._**

 ** _I smiled sheepishly. "Not with onion root."_**

 ** _"Whitefish blastula?"_**

 ** _"Yeah."_**

 ** _Mr. Banner nodded. "Were you in an advanced placement program in Phoenix?"_**

 ** _"Yes."_**

 ** _"Well," he said after a moment, "I guess it's good you two are lab partners." He mumbled something else as he walked away. After he left, I began doodling on my notebook again._**

"And here it comes," Bella commented, almost giggling.

"What?" Kim asked, leaning forward, feeling more and more comfortable.

"My boyfriend's adorable attempt at small talk," Bella told her, conspiratorially, though everyone could hear. The room was suddenly completely at ease, again surprising Jasper, and if it were possible for Edward to blush he would have.

 ** _"It's too bad about the snow, isn't it?" Edward asked._**

 ** _I had the feeling that he was forcing himself to make small talk with me. Paranoia swept over me again. It was like he had heard my conversation with Jessica at lunch and was trying to prove me wrong._**

 ** _"Not really," I answered honestly, instead of pretending to be normal like everyone else. I was still trying to dislodge the stupid feeling of suspicion, and I couldn't concentrate._**

 ** _"You don't like the cold." It wasn't a question._**

 ** _"Or the wet."_**

 ** _"Forks must be a difficult place for you to live," he mused._**

 ** _"You have no idea," I muttered darkly._**

 ** _He looked fascinated by what I said, for some reason I couldn't imagine. His face was such a distraction that I tried not to look at it any more than courtesy absolutely demanded._**

 ** _"Why did you come here, then?"_**

 ** _No one had asked me that - not straight out like he did, demanding._**

 ** _"It's... complicated."_**

 ** _"I think I can keep up," he pressed._**

 ** _I paused for a long moment, and then made the mistake of meeting his gaze. His dark gold eyes confused me, and I answered without thinking._**

 ** _"My mother got remarried," I said._**

 ** _"That doesn't sound so complex," he disagreed, but he was suddenly sympathetic. "When did that happen?"_**

 ** _"Last September." My voice sounded sad, even to me._**

 ** _"And you don't like him," Edward surmised, his tone still kind._**

 ** _"No, Phil is fine. Too young, maybe, but nice enough."_**

 ** _"Why didn't you stay with them?"_**

"You're right," Emily commented, "He really is awful at small talk. First the weather. Then pushy, personal questions, and assumptions."

Bella and Kim just looked at each other, and then back at Emily, and all three responded in unison, "Men." And just like that they were laughing again. This time, Alice and Rosalie joining in. Even Sue and Esme were fighting back smirks. It was strange how a comment like that could completely melt the tension in the room and bring Bella, the vampire women, and the Quileute women all onto even ground in an instant.

And every man in the room faked offense, and then smiled at the women affectionately. Bella had done it again, brought them all together, even if just for a moment. In that second they weren't wolves and vampires surrounded by humans, taking about mythical books. They were just men and women, laughing, normal.

 ** _I couldn't fathom his interest, but he continued to stare at me with penetrating eyes, as if my dull life's story was somehow vitally important._**

 ** _"Phil travels a lot. He plays ball for a living." I half-smiled._**

 ** _"Have I heard of him?" he asked, smiling in response._**

 ** _"Probably not. He doesn't play well. Strictly minor league. He moves around a lot."_**

 ** _"And your mother sent you here so that she could travel with him." He said it as an assumption again, not a question._**

 ** _My chin raised a fraction. "No, she did not send me here. I sent myself."_**

 ** _His eyebrows knit together. "I don't understand," he admitted, and he seemed unnecessarily frustrated by that fact._**

'Again with the odd frustration?' Charlie was in cop mode again, trying to get the pieces to fit together. 'He acts like he is used to knowing what everyone is going to say before they say it. And with Bella, he never knows what she is going to say, and he keeps misunderstanding her.' And then, just like that it clicked. 'He looks at her and expects to know what she is about to say, to know what she is thinking, but he can't, so he is frustrated, and asking all sorts of questions to try and fill in the gaps. Normally he acts completely uninterested in everyone, that's what Jessica said, right? Because he already knows everything there is to know, about everyone. Bella's boyfriend can read minds?! No, that's impossible, right? This is nuts!'

Edward had paused his reading while Charlie worked this out, and was listening intently. He sighed as he realized Charlie was just as observant as his daughter.

'Can you hear me?' Charlie asked in his head. Edward nodded, not wanting to draw attention to this yet.

'Does Bella know?' Again he nodded. 'Can you hear what she is thinking?' This time he shook his head no.

The rest of the group was wondering why he had stopped reading and were giving him an old look. 'Just keep reading,' Charlie urged him, 'But we will be talking about this later.' Edward just nodded and looked back at the book.

 ** _I sighed. Why was I explaining this to him? He continued to stare at me with obvious curiosity._**

 ** _"She stayed with me at first, but she missed him. It made her unhappy... so I decided it was time to spend some quality time with Charlie."_**

"Finally, the answer to the question 'why are you here?' has been revealed," Jared joked. But truthfully, he was glad to finally have at least one answer to the thousand questions running through his head. And he wasn't the only one. It had been a trying morning, and they were all glad to have one tiny piece of the puzzle fit into place.

 ** _My voice was glum by the time I finished._**

 ** _"But now you're unhappy," he pointed out._**

 ** _"And?" I challenged._**

 ** _"That doesn't seem fair." He shrugged, but his eyes were still intense._**

 ** _I laughed without humor. "Hasn't anyone ever told you? Life isn't fair."_**

 ** _"I believe I have heard that somewhere before," he agreed dryly._**

 ** _"So that's all," I insisted, wondering why he was still staring at me that way._**

 ** _His gaze became appraising. "You put on a good show," he said slowly. "But I'd be willing to bet that you're suffering more than you let anyone see."_**

 ** _I grimaced at him, resisting the impulse to stick out my tongue like a five-year-old, and looked away._**

 ** _"Am I wrong?"_**

 ** _I tried to ignore him._**

 ** _"I didn't think so," he murmured smugly._**

 ** _"Why does it matter to you?" I asked, irritated. I kept my eyes away, watching the teacher make his rounds._**

 ** _"That's a very good question," he muttered, so quietly that I wondered if he was talking to himself._**

"You heard that?" Edward asked, surprised. After hearing the wolves' inner musings all morning about her catching their snide comments, and seeing first-hand how nothing ever seemed to get by her, he shouldn't have been surprised, but he was. He knew he had said that too low for human ears. How had she heard him?

Her only answer was, "Obviously."

He decided he would ask Carlisle about that later. It would be too hard to discuss now without revealing everything.

 ** _However, after a few seconds of silence, I decided that was the only answer I was going to get._**

 ** _I sighed, scowling at the blackboard._**

 ** _"Am I annoying you?" he asked. He sounded amused._**

 ** _I glanced at him without thinking... and told the truth again. "Not exactly. I'm more annoyed at myself. My face is so easy to read - my mother always calls me her open book." I frowned._**

 ** _"On the contrary, I find you very difficult to read." Despite everything that I'd said and he'd guessed, he sounded like he meant it._**

'That's because your mind is somehow hidden from him Bells,' Charlie chuckled, beyond satisfied to finally be in the know about at least one thing going on today.

 ** _"You must be a good reader then," I replied._**

 ** _"Usually." He smiled widely, flashing a set of perfect, ultra-white teeth._**

 ** _Mr. Banner called the class to order then, and I turned with relief to listen. I was in disbelief that I'd just explained my dreary life to this bizarre, beautiful boy who may or may not despise me. He'd seemed engrossed in our conversation, but now I could see, from the corner of my eye, that he was leaning away from me again, his hands gripping the edge of the table with unmistakable tension._**

'Ok, next puzzle: why are you reacting as if my daughter smells like death and is stabbing you with a white-hot poker?' Charlie directed his questions at Edward now that he knew the boy could somehow hear him, something he still thought was impossible.

He was normally happier not knowing this sort of thing. It was easier that way. But now that S.M. had presented the mystery to him, and made everything seem dangerous and important, he was in full-on cop mode and he couldn't seem to shut it off. 'I will figure it out eventually you know…'

 ** _I tried to appear attentive as Mr. Banner illustrated, with transparencies on the overhead projector, what I had seen without difficulty through the microscope. But my thoughts were unmanageable._**

 ** _When the bell finally rang, Edward rushed as swiftly and as gracefully from the room as he had last Monday. And, like last Monday, I stared after him in amazement._**

 ** _Mike skipped quickly to my side and picked up my books for me. I imagined him with a wagging tail._**

 ** _"That was awful," he groaned. "They all looked exactly the same. You're lucky you had Cullen for a partner."_**

"Why does everyone assume you are completely incompetent?" Rosalie asked, clearly irritated with Mike. The Cullens were still adjusting to the fact that Rosalie apparently didn't despise Bella, and were surprised to hear her defending her new sister so openly, despite their shows of affection earlier this morning.

"Don't look at me," Bella said, "I've been asking myself that same question all my life."

 ** _"I didn't have any trouble with it," I said, stung by his assumption. I regretted the snub instantly. "I've done the lab before, though," I added before he could get his feelings hurt._**

 ** _"Cullen seemed friendly enough today," he commented as we shrugged into our raincoats. He didn't seem pleased about it._**

 ** _I tried to sound indifferent. "I wonder what was with him last Monday."_**

 ** _I couldn't concentrate on Mike's chatter as we walked to Gym, and P.E. didn't do much to hold my attention, either. Mike was on my team today. He chivalrously covered my position as well as his own, so my woolgathering was only interrupted when it was my turn to serve; my team ducked warily out of the way every time I was up._**

 ** _The rain was just a mist as I walked to the parking lot, but I was happier when I was in the dry cab. I got the heater running, for once not caring about the mind-numbing roar of the engine. I unzipped my jacket, put the hood down, and fluffed my damp hair out so the heater could dry it on the way home._**

 _ **I looked around me to make sure it was clear. That's when I noticed the still, white figure. Edward Cullen was leaning against the front door of the Volvo, three cars down from me, and staring intently in my direction. I swiftly looked away and threw the truck into reverse, almost hitting a rusty Toyota Corolla in my haste. Lucky for the Toyota, I stomped on the brake in time. It was just the sort of car that my truck would make scrap metal of. I took a deep breath, still looking out the other side of my car, and cautiously pulled out again, with greater success. I stared straight ahead as I passed the Volvo, but from a peripheral peek, I would swear I saw him laughing.**_

"Edward," Esme chided him, "You shouldn't laugh at her. She could have been hurt."

"Sorry mom," he replied, earning a small smile from Esme at the endearment of 'mom', and confusion from the wolves at the same comment.

"Well, that's the end of the chapter, right?" Bella asked, hopeful for a break. She needed a human moment, or ten, and wasn't sure how to alert her not-so-human companions to that fact without either making things awkward, or confusing everyone else there. Normally, she would have simply said something too low for the rest to hear, but apparently for some reason, the three overgrown Quileute boys in the corner could hear that just fine.

"Yes," Edward replied, sensing the direction of her thoughts even if he couldn't actually hear them, "Why don't we take a short break. Everyone can stretch their legs, use the restroom, grab a snack. We can start reading again in a little bit."

"Sure, sounds good," Bella said, jumping up and heading to the restroom.

"Son, can we talk for a minute?" Charlie asked him, aloud, for the benefit of everyone else in the room, as well as for his own sanity.

"Sure," he replied, easily, though he was quite nervous, "Take a walk with me?"

Billy looked horrified as his friend walked off into the woods behind the house with the vampire, but Jasper quickly quieted his fears, and silently prayed they were unwarranted. What did Charlie want to discuss? Because his resolve and sudden feelings of clarity told Jasper the police chief knew something, and was going to be confronting it head on.


	8. Chapter 8 Overprotective Dad Speech

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 ** _Chapter 8 – Time for the Overprotective Dad Speech_**

Charlie was leaning casually against the trunk of an overgrown spruce tree near the river behind the Cullen home, just out of the earshot of everyone gathered inside. His eyes were closed, and he was breathing deeply, with exaggerated slowness, gathering his thoughts, and trying to relax.

Edward stood a few feet away, his hands clasped loosely behind his back, watching the river run by. He listened as Charlie worked up the courage to ask his questions, trying to give the man the illusion of privacy, even if he had already worked out the basics on his own, and likely knew Edward was listening.

"So," Charlie finally spoke, opening his eyes and looking over at his daughter's boyfriend, unsure of how to feel, "You can read minds?"

"Yes," Edward answered simply. He already knew so there was no use denying it, and he would have found out through the books sooner or later anyway. It was oddly liberating to be able to share this with Charlie. The man was incredibly important to Bella, and it nice not to have to keep lying to him.

"But not Bella's?" Charlie had already asked this in the house earlier, but needed to verification, and honestly needed to say the words aloud at least once for his own sanity.

"No," his answer was again short and to the point. He had spent so much time beating around the bush with Bella about this, talking in riddles and hypotheticals. Knowing now how well Swans seemed to take supernatural surprises in stride, he wished he could have been this direct with her all those months ago. It would have saved them both a lot of time.

"Do you know why you can't hear her?" Charlie surprised him by asking. He didn't seem concerned about the fact that the boy his daughter had fallen in love with possessed a strange, impossible ability, and instead was worried about what Bella's immunity to it might mean about her. Was she gifted too? Or was something wrong with her mind that his gift was picking up on? He was considering taking her to see a specialist so he could rule out cancerous tumors when Edward finally interrupted his inner ramblings.

"I don't know, though Carlisle and I both have several theories on that front," he answered his original question before delving into the man's real concerns as revealed in his thoughts, "Bella is not sick. There is nothing wrong with her brain, physically at least. We do rather enjoy teasing her about her reactions to things, but she is perfectly healthy." He paused for a moment, deciding whether it was wise to finish that thought before saying to hell with it and telling Charlie the truth, "And I can say that as someone with two medical degrees."

'Two medical degrees? But he's only seventeen? Right? God, I hate not knowing what is going on. What has Bella gotten herself into?' Charlie didn't answer him aloud, or acknowledge the new information. He simply closed his eyes again, thinking deeply and focusing on keeping his breathing steady.

"Charlie," Edward continued softly, "I know this is impossible for you. First the cryptic letters from an unknown sender who seems to know Bella. As a cop, that must have sent up red flags right away. Then the strange behavior of both my family, and the tribe members who have joined us here. You are a man who trusts his gut – that's what makes you a good cop – and I know that you have had a bad feeling about this whole situation from the start."

He paused, looking to Charlie for confirmation, even though it was phrased as a statement of fact, since Edward already knew he was right. Bella's father simply opened his eyes slowly, and nodded once.

"Then the books. Someone with a gift to see into Bella's mind. Something you now know even I cannot do. A gift to see her past and her future, all of our futures. I know that that seems insane, and you didn't want to believe it. And all of us taking it in stride like it was normal only made it all that much harder on you."

Again Charlie simply nodded, though internally he was reeling. He had known the Quileutes were superstitious and that they didn't trust the Cullens as a result. He and Billy had fought about it more than once. So he wasn't surprised that they all jumped on board with the 'magical powers, mystery danger' thought train fairly quickly.

It was Bella's reaction that had bothered him. She seemed so calm, so unsurprised, like this sort of thing was completely normal.

And if she had been dating a telepath for nearly a year, maybe it was her normal.

But her reactions had only gotten stranger and stranger. As she heard Sam recount her thoughts as she prepared to die – 'I haven't forgotten that! We will be discussing that damned preface in a minute!' Charlie's thoughts came through loud and clear, directed at Edward. – she had remained unphased. Her cryptic comments about others with gifts, and the Cullen's behavior; it was all so unsettling. Why didn't any of this stuff bother her at all?

"How did Bella get mixed up in all this?" he finally asked, not even really sure what this was.

"We fell in love," Edward answered as if it were obvious, "Our girl is a magnet of trouble. She draws danger to her like I have never seen before. Yet she always comes out alright. It's nothing short of a miracle really, and I don't think you are going to like hearing about all of the close calls she has had, just in the time that I've known her, but they are very important to how she learned about me, my family, and my world. In a way, they helped bring us together."

And they really had. Edward thought back to that first day, the day he had very nearly killed his love in that classroom full of innocent humans. Her scent had set her apart from everyone else immediately. It made her important, even if at the time he had hated her for it. Then her silent mind made her fascinating, forcing him to interact with her directly to satisfy his own curiosity. Never mind that she was stunning, and witty, and downright wonderful to be around, it was that near disastrous afternoon in a biology lab that made all the difference. Because he knew that he probably would have completely ignored her existence otherwise, as he did with all the other human girls he had ever met. After all, she didn't belong in his world…

He pushed that last thought away harshly. He had promised his siblings, and himself, that he would never leave her. And he knew that she would never leave him. So, for better or for worse, she was now and forever a part of his world. He just hoped it wouldn't get her killed one of these days.

His thirst. Tyler's Van. Port Angeles. James. Birthday party…

Bella really had had a danger filled year. And Charlie was right, none of it ever seemed to get to her.

Vampires. Tribal Legends. Telepath. Empath. Psychic. Tracker…

She took everything in stride, without even blinking. And for the first time, Edward wondered if there wasn't another reason for that, if maybe she wasn't surprised or frightened because he wasn't the first supernatural person she had known. She had spent much of her childhood on the reservation with Jacob Black; perhaps hearing the stories as a kid had simply prepared her for the possibility? Or was it possible that maybe, just maybe, Bella knew more about his world that she had ever let on? She did say that she had never related well to people her age, or even to other humans at all really. Was there more to the story of her childhood than she had shared with all of them?

"Son, you alright?" Charlie asked, pulling Edward from his deep thoughts, "You looked a little lost there for a minute."

"Just thinking Charlie," he answered him carefully, "You aren't the only one who was surprised by how easily Bella accepts everything about me and my life. I was just wondering if there might be something to that, some reason that none of this stuff ever really seems to surprise her?"

"You've got me there," he answered, sighing loudly, "She really is something isn't she?"

"Yeah, she really is," Edward told him, letting all of his love and awe seep into those simple words.

"So you're a telepath?" Charlie reiterated, still working to wrap his head around it, "Any other special powers in that house I need to know about?" he asked seriously. Part of him didn't want to know, and part of him did not want to wait through a dozen chapters or more of that damned book to find out. These people were quickly becoming like a second family to his Bella, and it was past time he learned everything there was to know about them.

"Ok, I cannot believe I am telling you this," Edward began, laughing humorlessly at the ridiculousness of the situation S.M. had put him in, "But yes, there are."

"Ok?" Charlie urged, his brow pulled together in frustration and disbelief.

"My brother, Jasper, can sense people's emotions, and influence them somewhat. He's an empath. Which has really come in handy today. He has been trying to help people calm down some when everything gets…" Edward trailed off, searching for the words to describe the whirlwind that had been this morning.

"To be completely insane and impossible," Charlie provided, shaking his head.

"Yeah. I suppose that is one way of describing our lives," Edward responded.

"Anyone else?" He needed to know, for him, for Bella; he just needed to know.

"Alice, my little sister, she is psychic. She can see the path people are going to take based on the decisions that they make. It's not set in stone, and it isn't as detailed and far reaching as what S.M. can apparently do, but it is never wrong either. Her gift has saved all our lives more times than I would ever care to admit."

"So, that's what she meant," Charlie began, working through all the new information, his mind beginning to go into overload, "Bella said that she had known people with gifts like S.M.'s. That's what she meant; Alice can see the future like our mystery friend, and you can read minds just like S.M."

"Yes," Edward responded, thought there was one part of her comment that still troubled him. She had said that she had known people with both the gifts to see the future and the past. Alice could do the first, but not the second. So, did Bella misspeak, or was there someone out there with this second gift that Bella had never told him about? Were they the mystery supernatural person from her past that had opened up her mind to all of this? Or was he reading entirely too much into what she had said?

"But what about the other gift?" Charlie asked, his thoughts running parallel to Edward's.

"You mean the gift to see into someone's past?" Edward asked, thought he knew exactly what Charlie had meant.

"Yes, I suppose that is one way of looking at it," he answered, "though it does seem connected to the mind reading thing. Like S.M. can see every thought that a person has ever had. Is that possible?"

And now that he thought about it, that did seem like a possible explanation for S.M.'s knowledge. Though it still didn't explain who Bella had been referring to. "Yes, that could be it," he said simply, "Carlisle knows of one person from his past with a gift such as that. His name is Aro, and he can hear every thought that a person has ever had with a single touch. Though S.M. doesn't seem to need that for the gift to work, given that she has supposedly never met Bella."

"Does Bella know this Aro? Could he be who she was talking about?" Charlie asked, desperately trying to put the pieces together.

"No, there is no way that she could have met him. He and Carlisle knew each other a long time ago, before I came to live with him," he explained, not mentioning that he had been with Carlisle since 1918.

"We will have to ask her about all of this later. It appears there are many questions we still need answered."

"Yes. I want to know. I can't shake the feeling that there is something major she isn't telling us, but I can't really blame her." Edward blew out his breath roughly, frustrated. He wanted to be mad. He wanted to be afraid. He wanted to worry and panic and run back to Bella right now and get answers. But he really couldn't blame her if she was keeping this sort of secret, even from him, even if it might help them all to identify S.M.

"And why is that?" Charlie asked, confused again. This was quickly becoming a permanent state of mind for him.

"She has kept my secret, from everyone. She has never once mentioned what me or my siblings can do to anyone," or the fact that we all drink blood and live forever, he added snarkily, "So how can I be upset that she has possibly kept a similar secret for another? She's already covering for a telepath, an empath, and a psychic. What's one more gifted to add to the list?"

They both laughed for moment at the sheer ridiculousness of the whole situation. Bella's life was never dull, that much was certain. Charlie could barely wrap his head around all of it, and she was somehow living it every day, and she didn't seem to bat an eye even once.

"So let me get this straight," Charlie muttered, "My daughter's boyfriend is a telepath, who apparently has two medical degrees. His brother is an empath. And his sister is a psychic. No wonder she is so good with weird. I assume she knows about all this? You did say she is keeping your secrets after all?"

"Of course. She and I have no secrets Charlie, not any more. My family and I trust her implicitly. And she has accepted us all." Edward answered truthfully. He hadn't told him about their true nature yet, and he really didn't want to, but he had a feeling this conversation wouldn't be over until everything was out in the open.

"You are right to trust her," Charlie told him, truly amazed that his daughter had been able to keep this whole part of her life a secret from him, "She would never betray you, not even to her own father."

"You know that she never actually lied to you, right?" Edward implored, wanting him to understand and hoping he wouldn't be angry with him or Bella, "It simply isn't safe for you to know everything. I really shouldn't be telling you any of this now, but S.M. has forced my hand, and it all will come out in the books anyway. So I want to be able to explain it to you first so you're prepared. But she never lied to you, and she only ever kept you in the dark in order to protect you, and us."

"There's more isn't there?" he asked in disbelief, "More than you and your siblings being gifted? Obviously a lot of things have happened over the last year that I don't know about, and I'm fine with the books slowly revealing that stuff, but if there is something else, something big, that you're not telling me, I need to know now."

Well, crap. 'Thanks a lot S.M.' Edward thought bitterly, 'Time to tell my hopefully future father-in-law that his hopefully future son-in-law is an undead immortal. This ought to go over like a ton of bricks.'

He took a deep, unnecessary breath to steady himself and then answered honestly, "Yes. I'm going to let the books tell you all the details, but the long and short of it is I'm not human, at least not anymore."

Charlie closed his eyes tightly, and pinched the bridge of his nose, much like Edward and even Carlisle did when they were thinking. "Explain."

"I was born human. When I was seventeen, I fell ill, along with my parents. They both died. There was nothing that could be done, and I was very close to following them to the grave," Edward was speaking low, a sadness sneaking into his voice, and Charlie listened intently.

He never said when he was born, or how old he was now. Or even what he was now. None of this escaped Charlie's notice, but he didn't interrupt.

"Carlisle was the physician who nursed my mother and father into the grave. But for some reason, he couldn't watch me die. He knew there was a way to save me, and he did. He changed me, made me like him. And so I survived the illness and lived on, but I was never truly human again."

"The legends are all true aren't they?" Charlie asked, not wanting to admit that he was beginning to put the pieces together.

"Yes."

"You're immortal? You all are?" His eyes flashed open, a mix of fear and confusion dancing in them. A normal, expected, human reaction from a member of the Swan family, finally.

"Yes."

"A cold one? A blood drinker?" Charlie was beginning to hyperventilate.

"Yes."

Charlie slid to the ground then. Billy had been right all along, and he had hated him for trying to spread such 'lies' about the Cullen family. Coven? Family? He didn't know what to think any more. "You are a vampire?" he asked again, trying to regain his sense of calm.

"Yes," Edward answered before kneeling down beside Charlie and looking him square in the eyes, "I am a vampire. So are Carlisle and Esme, Rosalie and Emmett, Jasper and Alice. My whole family are vampires. But Charlie, we mean you no harm. We are not going to hurt anyone, and we would certainly never hurt Bella. We all love her like family, and we would protect her with our lives."

"The hunter, from the preface of the book? The one that tried to kill Bella? He was a vampire too wasn't he? That's why she never said anything, never told me she was in danger?" Charlie asked.

"Yes," he answered, his own eyes haunted with the memory of finding Bella so close to death. He thought he had lost her that day, and just the thought of her ever being in that position again had him completely on edge. How was he supposed to explain this to Charlie? God, he was a human, he shouldn't even know about any of this at all, and know he had to figure out how detailed an explanation to give the man about his daughter's attack? This was royally messed up.

"It's ok, son," Charlie cut into his thoughts, silencing his internal debate, "I don't need to know everything now. The books will explain everything in time. I don't like this, any of it, but I can see that you truly love her. And she must really love you to deal with all of this insanity every day in order to be with you."

Edward just smiled, completely in agreement on both counts.

"Thank you for trusting me with all of this. I still have a million questions, and I can't promise not to totally grill you later about anything the book might reveal as we go, but I trust you enough to let this be, for now." Charlie spoke as he gathered himself and stood, "But so help me God, if you ever hurt my little girl, I will hunt you to the ends of the earth, vampire or not."

His threat should have been almost funny, given the absolute impossibility of him harming Edward, but it wasn't. He truly loved his daughter, and his thoughts revealed just how genuine the sentiment really was. He would gladly face off with a vampire if it meant protecting Bella. He would die for her. And that was the most meaningful thing he could have ever expressed to the man before him.

"She is in good hands Charlie. I love her with everything I have, everything I am. And I will always do everything I can to keep her from harm. You have my word."

"I'm going to hold you to that," he answered gruffly, holding out his hand. The two men shook hands, sharing a meaningful look, and then the moment was over.

Father had warned his daughter's love against hurting her, and gleaned all he could about the life she was going to lead. Now it was time for them both to get back to the others.


	9. Chapter 9 Letting Him in on the Secret

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 9 – Letting Him in On the Secret**

Billy was in a full on panic watching Charlie leave the house alone with Edward. His best friend was headed into the woods, alone, with a bloodsucker. He couldn't just let that happen. He turned to Carlisle, giving the coven leader a meaningful glare, before deciding to speak his mind, "If any harm comes to Charlie, so help me God…"

Carlisle looked surprised at the man's threat. He knew Edward would never harm Bella's father, so Billy's concern seemed absurd to him, but he also knew that Billy's own son was completely unaware up to this point as to what was really going on here, and such a comment would elicit questions.

"Charlie is perfectly safe Billy," he answered, trying to soothe the Chief's fears, "My son would never harm him."

Esme smiled softly at Billy, adding her own reassurance, "Charlie is Bella's family. And we all consider Bella to be our family. You have our word that no one here could ever be a threat to Charlie."

Billy did not seem convinced in the slightest, and bit back harshly, "Just being here is a threat. It's what you are. Why should we believe for a second that you can be trusted?"

Carlisle was growing incredibly uneasy. Billy seemed completely oblivious to the fact that all of the others were gathering back in the living room, having returned from the bathroom and kitchen ready to start up again, and they could hear every word being spoken.

Jasper sensed his father's uncertainty, and decided to answer Billy while simultaneously easing his fear and hostility, "You're right. We are what we are. But you know full well we fight against that every single day, fight to be better than others like us. Charlie is an extension of our family now, through Bella, but honestly, it wouldn't matter if it was a complete stranger walking into those woods right now. Edward would never harm him, and we have given you no reason to think otherwise."

"He has been like a brother to me my whole life," Billy tried to explain, his voice cracking slightly, his fear and anger quickly morphing into worry and sadness, "I can't help but worry about him. I just don't want to see him hurt…"

"And you won't," this time it was Bella who answered the tribal leader. She approached him, kneeling in front of his chair so she was looking straight into his eyes, and grasped his hand firmly in hers, "This has been an insane morning. I know you are on edge; we all are, myself included. But you are safe here. Your son is safe here. Your people are safe here. And Charlie is safe here. I know you're not ready to trust the Cullens yet, and that's ok. Trust is earned, and hopefully these books will help achieve that. But trust me. Trust that I wouldn't let my father, who I love dearly, walk out that door if I thought for a second that it wasn't safe. Trust that I never would have brought him here in the first place, SM be damned, if I didn't know with absolute certainty that he would be ok here. I would never willingly put Charlie in danger. Never. Can you trust in that?"

Everyone listened to her in awe. The vampires and wolves both recognized in that moment that she really would defy SM, and anyone else, no matter how dangerous or powerful, in order to protect her loved ones. The humans in the room could not fathom how she was so sure, so strong, but they were inclined to believe her. She was right; no one was ready to trust the Cullens, but they knew she wouldn't risk Charlie, and that was enough for now.

"Ok," Billy whispered, squeezing Bella's hand, still firmly gripping his own, "I trust you Bells. You're like a daughter to me, and if you say he is safe, I will try to accept that. I just worry…"

"I know," she answered, smiling kindly. She really did love the old fool, even with all his meddling in her personal life of late. She wanted to be angry with him for the prom stunt, and honestly there were times when she couldn't stand him, but she still loved him deep down. He really was like a second father to her, more so than Phil ever was or would be, and she couldn't begrudge him his fears.

Everyone was returning to their seats, content for the time being to accept Bella's word, and wait for Charlie and Edward to return in peace.

Everyone that is, except Jacob.

The poor boy was so confused by everything going on, and was getting more and more irritated as the morning progressed, and this was the last straw for him. He wanted answers, and he wanted them now.

Jasper sensed his frustration, and tried to quiet it before he said anything, but it was too late.

"Alright, will someone please tell me what the hell is going on here?" he asked, quite a bit louder than strictly necessary, "I am so tired of being the only one out of the loop here. What in all hells is going on here?"

"Son…" Billy began, trying rather unsuccessfully to keep Jacob from pushing the issue right now.

"Don't patronize me Dad. Something is going on here. Something big. And every single person in this room knows, except for me. I suspect Charlie is just as confused as I am, which is probably why he asked Edward to talk privately. If I know the Chief, he is out there grilling that boy for answers as we speak. And he is not the only one who wants to know what is going on. So somebody start talking. Now."

The tribe members all looked to Sam, while the Cullens all looked to Carlisle, everyone silently asking the same question, 'What are we supposed to tell him?'.

Of course, before either of the men could speak, Bella decided for everyone. Jacob was her friend, like a brother, and he was right. He deserved to know what was going on. SM had involved him in this for a reason, and honestly, the books were going to expose everything anyway, so why not just tell him?

"Listen Jake," she began, sighing when all eyes shifted to her, wondering what she was about to say, "What I'm about to tell you is beyond secret, and under any other circumstances I would never share this with you, so I need you to promise me right now that none of this every leaves this group. Can you do that?"

"Of course Bells," he replied easily, "You know you can trust me. Besides, something tells me, I would get thrown in the looney bin if I ever said anything about this to anyone."

That comment actually earned a few laughs from the tense group.

"Probably," Bella chuckled, "Do you remember the legends of your tribe? The ones about the wolf protectors and their enemies, the Cold Ones?"

Jacob blushed deeply. He wasn't supposed to tell anyone about that, and he had a feeling from the looks he was being given by his father, and the tribal elders, he was going to get an earful for sharing them with Bella if they ever found out he was the one who spilled the beans. "Uh, yeah."

"I know you didn't believe they were anything but scary stories passed down around campfires," she continued, unfortunately verifying for the tribesmen that he had in fact told her about this, "But most legends are based in some semblance of truth Jake."

"What are you saying Bells?" he asked uneasily, afraid he knew exactly what she was saying.

"The Cold Ones are real. Vampires are real. And the Cullens really are the coven you heard about growing up. Your ancestors made a treaty with them, a long time ago, and they only recently returned to Forks, but that treaty stands. They're not human Jake, but they don't hunt people. That's why Ephraim agreed to the peace in the first place. They only drink the blood of animals." Bella was watching Jacob carefully, as he sat silent, letting his mind absorb all of this, "They are potentially dangerous, and others of their kind pose a great threat to your people. That is why your dad is so nervous. But they won't hurt anyone. Do you understand Jake?"

"That day in the classroom, when Edward was glaring at you, and his eyes were black," he started working things out, out loud, piecing together all the little side comments that had been nagging at him all morning, "He was trying to resist hurting you, wasn't he?"

"Yes," she admitted quietly, "I had no idea what was going on at the time. I knew he was different, that all of them were. And I think deep down I knew they weren't precisely human from the first moment I laid eyes on them in the school cafeteria, but that first day in Biology I was so confused. So I understand what you've been feeling all morning. You and Charlie both."

Bella then threw a piercing look at the wolves, and decided she needed to ask a question of her own while they were getting things out in the open, "Until today I thought that the only part of your legends that was to be taken completely literally was that of the Cold Ones, but I suppose I should have known better."

The tribesmen looked incredibly nervous, but said nothing.

"My understanding of the stories is that you are all supposedly descended from wolves, that you were once spirit warriors, and that some of you possess shape shifting abilities?" she phrased it as a question, but didn't wait for a response.

"You three," she continued, nodding to Sam, Paul, and Jared, "You are all incredibly tall and fit, and you all look like you're strong enough to snap tree trunks. You obviously already knew about the Cullens, and have done little to show your distaste for them. You hear things that no human should be able to hear. You're all incredibly protective of the other humans here, and look like you are ready to take on a vampire if need be. And I have seen every single one of you wrinkle your nose enough times this morning to tell me you can detect the Cullen's distinct scent, and it is instinctually unpleasant to you. Add all of that to legends about shape shifting, wolf protectors, not to mention your enormous appetites, and unusually high skin temperature… You three are werewolves, yes or no?"

"Yes," Sam said simply, his eyes bugging out of his head. She was way to observant for her own good. How in the hell had she figured all of that out in one morning?

"What?!" Jacob exclaimed, going into information overload. Vampires, ok, that's insane, but he was working to get his head around that. But werewolves? These were his people, and Bella had said that Ephraim Black was one of them… Crap! Did that mean he was going to be turning into one too? He got one answer and suddenly had a hundred new questions.

Billy was trying to figure out the best way to explain everything to his son, but again, Bella beat him to the punch.

"I think that's why SM wanted you here Jake," she said, smiling despite the new turmoil in her friend, "Everyone here has a role to play in the things to come, and there are clearly things that need to be changed. You are the descendant of Ephraim Black, a Chief, and an Alpha?" she phrased the last bit as a question, though she was pretty sure she was right. Sam and Billy both nodded silently, still amazed at how much she seemed to be figuring out about them today.

"So," Jacob began, uncertain how to phrase his main question, "Sam, Paul, and Jared are werewolves? And I come from the blood of werewolves, specifically Alpha wolves? And the Cullens are vampires? And vampires are the enemies of werewolves? But Ephraim made a truce with them so they're more or less ok, as long as they don't hurt anyone? And SM wants me here because…?"

"Because I very much suspect you will eventually be joining the pack," Bella correctly surmised, the two of them speaking to each other as if no one else was in the room, "And someday you will likely become Alpha, and Chief. So everything we learn from these books is important to you as the future leader of your people. SM, whoever she is, gave us these so we could fix our mistakes before we make them. I suspect you not knowing about any of this before you joined the pack, and becoming completely overwhelmed by having everything dropped on you all at once with no warning or preparation, likely led to a lot of avoidable mistakes. So now you know, and you can avoid those errors."

"That's very insightful of you, Bella," Old Quil commented, bringing everyone out of their shock, and reminding the two teenagers that the rest of them were in fact still in the room.

"He's right," Sam continued, "I know the first time I changed I was terrified and confused. It took months for me to get a handle on what was happening, and there is still a lot that we don't really understand. If I had known before the change what was coming I could have avoided some serious screw-ups," he was clearly thinking of Leah, and his pack brothers gave him sympathetic glances, "This is our chance not to make the same mistake with you Jake."

"Maybe the books will tell the rest of us who our imprints are!" Paul suddenly said, excited now.

"And who else is going to join the pack," Jared added.

"When vampires will pass through our territory, and how to defeat them," Sam continued, just as pleased with the fact that he could now voice all of this without fear of exposure.

Bella began laughing at their newfound enthusiasm, and at Jake's growing look of confusion as he contemplated everything they were saying. He seemed stuck on the term imprints, but decided not to push it. The Cullens joined in her laughter, and soon the whole room was completely at ease, which threw Jasper for a loop, again.

"So now that everyone has the basics, can we just let the rest of the details be filled in as we go along?" Bella asked the group, not wanting to spend all day explaining histories, when they had barely made a dent in the book, and she really wanted to know what was coming next that had SM sending these in the first place.

"Of course," Carlisle agreed, and Sam nodded as well, "We really should get back to the books. If I remember correctly, things are about to get more interesting, and I cannot wait to hear how you reacted to everything that happened."

"Agreed," Edward said, making all the humans jump as he re-entered the room, Charlie on his heels. He paused for a moment, taking in everyone's thoughts, as they all absorbed the conversation that had just transpired in his absence. His brows pulled together in concentration before going up in distinct surprise, "Jacob knows?"

"Yes," Carlisle said, uncertain how much to say in front of Charlie.

"So does Charlie," Edward added, much to the surprise of everyone in the room, "Or at least he knows about us," he clarified as he got more detail of the conversation that he had missed, "I didn't realize I should have filled him in on their side too…"

Charlie looked confused and was about to ask when Bella spoke up, "Cliff notes version ok with you Dad?" she asked calmly and continued when he nodded, "The Cullens are vampires who only hunt animals and have a long-standing treaty with the Quileutes, who are protected by a pack of shape-shifting werewolves. Hollywood got pretty much everything wrong for both species. The legends however are all true, and the books are going to go into way more detail on everything as we go, so we have all agreed that we know enough to continue for now."

Charlie started laughing heartily, surprising everyone, "Alright Bells. Edward already filled me in on a lot of it, and I pieced a fair bit together myself from everything that's happened this morning. Werewolves is news to me, and I am going to have lots of questions about that later, but it's all good. I just can't help thinking that your life sounds like the plot to a really cheesy horror movie," he explained between his continued laughter.

"Yeah Dad," she replied smiling, "You have no idea…"


	10. Chapter 10 SM Humor and Risking Exposure

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 10 – SM Humor and Risking Exposure**

"Ok," Bella cut in, trying to refocus the now thoroughly distracted and rowdy gathering, "Now that everyone has enough information to understand what's going on without undue frustration and hostility, can we please get back to reading the books? I have already lived this whole first one, and am getting antsy to start the others."

"Yeah," Jacob answered, smiling. He was thoroughly pleased to have some answers, even if he had no idea what to do with the fact that he would likely someday become a werewolf, "Want me to take a turn with the book?" No one objected so he grabbed it and opened it up to the next chapter, only to have yet another letter fall from the pages.

Jacob picked up the small folded piece of paper and looked it over quickly before handing it to Bella saying, "It's addressed to you Bells."

She unfolded it carefully, and began laughing to herself as she read it over.

"What?" Edward asked her, desperately wishing he could see into her mind for just a moment. SM had given him a taste of her inner dialogue and now he found himself even more annoyed with not being able to hear her thoughts in real time.

She looked up at him and smiled, "SM had some choice words for all of us, and I simply find her to be well… I'll just read it."

 **Bella darling, my favorite little danger magnet,**

 **I trust that the puppies are behaving themselves. I'm sure by now the baby Alpha has decided he wants answers. Don't worry, he's all bark, no bite. Tell him whatever you wish. I'll be revealing it all anyway as your story unfolds, so he might as well have a little heads-up. (We all know Chief Wheels and the oldies don't do nearly enough to get their pups ready.)**

 **I'm sure poppa cop (Nessie's affectionate nickname for your father) has also started interrogating someone, likely your beloved telepath, and is more or less in on the secret. Don't worry, he's good with weird, sort of like his daughter.**

 **I suspect the main disastrous mistake I was hoping to avoid (or rather help Edward avoid) by sending these books has already been handled. You'll have to ask Brother Bear and your other charming, undead siblings how they managed to talk him down. (Fair warning, as he didn't change his mind until after these were written and sent, book-Adonis…I mean book-Edward, will still be doing something incredibly stupid. Sorry. But hopefully hearing all about the consequences will help keep him from changing his mind on the subject.)**

 **That being said, there are still countless dangers ahead that you all could benefit from reading about, so get a move on. There are four books, so no more breaks. Get your sparkly/furry little butts in gear and change your future for the better.**

 **Best of luck and lots of love always,**

 **S.M.**

By the time Bella finished reading the incredibly snarky letter, she could barely breathe she was laughing so hard.

Indignant grumbles ran through the whole group at the nicknames SM had devised for them all, but after a moment they all joined in Bella's mirth, thoroughly amused by the whole thing.

"Puppies seriously?" Sam huffed, trying to keep a straight face, and failing miserably.

"Oh yes," Emily mused, enjoying herself, "You boys best behave. I'd hate to have to put you in the dog house."

Kim was laughing right alongside her, "We are so buying spray bottles and leashes. SM is awesome."

The wolves did not look amused in the slightest at this, but Emily couldn't be bothered. "Next time they cause a fuss, we'll just flick their noses or swat them with a rolled up newspaper," she said.

Jacob was laughing along with most of the group, but shut up when Paul turned his glare on him, "Oh yeah, laugh it up 'baby alpha'," he said, only-half teasing, "You'll be one of the 'puppies' soon too."

"Forget the dog comments," Emmett bellowed, jabbing his elbow into Edward's side, "Someone needs to give our brother here proper grief for the 'Adonis' slip." And again, the room erupted in laughter.

Bella was blushing hugely, desperately hoping that no one realized SM likely picked up that nickname from writing down her own thoughts about him.

Charlie and Billy were teasing each other about their respective nicknames, when Bella realized something. "Who's Nessie?" she asked.

"Huh?" Jared added helpfully.

"The letter," Bella began, growing more serious again, "SM said poppa-cop was Nessie's nickname for my dad. That sounds like the sort of nickname a child would give him, and poppa implies it is either his daughter or granddaughter. But as far as I'm aware, I'm an only child, and well," she pauses, looking at Edward uneasily, "I don't expect to be having any children of my own. So who is Nessie?"

All the light humor was lost from the room as her words echoed in their minds. She was right. They still had no idea who SM was, and now there was this second mystery person added to the mix.

In addition, Bella's comment about never having children weighed heavily on Edward, reminding him of all the things she would have to give up in order to be with him, even if she was never changed. It had him questioning his decision to stay, despite his promise, and SM's continued warnings. How could he ask her to give up a chance to be a mother?

"I think we have enough unanswered questions at the moment," Sue said quietly, "Perhaps, rather than continuing to ponder them, we should just get back to the book. SM did say it was important that we pick up the pace."

"You're right," her husband agreed, "Please Jacob, go on."

 **3\. PHENOMENON**

 **When I opened my eyes in the morning, something was different.**

 **It was the light. It was still the gray-green light of a cloudy day in the forest, but it was clearer somehow. I realized there was no fog veiling my window.**

 **I jumped up to look outside, and then groaned in horror.**

"What now?" Emmett couldn't help but ask.

"Snow," Bella muttered, like it was the equivalent of hell on earth, "And ice!" She visibly shuddered, much to the amusement of the wolves, but the Cullens all suddenly realized what this chapter was going to be about and were uneasy.

 **A fine layer of snow covered the yard, dusted the top of my truck, and whitened the road. But that wasn't the worst part. All the rain from yesterday had frozen solid - coating the needles on the trees in fantastic, gorgeous patterns, and making the driveway a deadly ice slick. I had enough trouble not falling down when the ground was dry; it might be safer for me to go back to bed now.**

"It really would have been," Bella, Edward, and Alice all said simultaneously. Their words were ominous, but the way they all spoke in unison and then looked at each other surprised, had them all giggling in spite of that.

 **Charlie had left for work before I got downstairs. In a lot of ways, living with Charlie was like having my own place, and I found myself reveling in the aloneness instead of being lonely.**

"I always worry that I leave you alone too much," Charlie commented, his voice full of remorse. He worried about her before, when he thought she was just a normal teenage girl. Now that he knew just how insane her life was, he felt horrible for leaving her to deal with all of it on her own.

"I don't mind being alone Dad," she responded, reassuring him easily, "I'm a lot like you that way," she continued laughing at the blush that quickly spread across her father's face.

 **I threw down a quick bowl of cereal and some orange juice from the carton. I felt excited to go to school, and that scared me. I knew it wasn't the stimulating learning environment I was anticipating, or seeing my new set of friends. If I was being honest with myself, I knew I was eager to get to school because I would see Edward Cullen. And that was very, very stupid.**

 **I should be avoiding him entirely after my brainless and embarrassing babbling yesterday. And I was suspicious of him; why should he lie about his eyes? I was still frightened of the hostility I sometimes felt emanating from him, and I was still tongue-tied whenever I pictured his perfect face. I was well aware that my league and his league were spheres that did not touch.**

"Oh Bella," Edward began, pulling her against his chest tightly, "You really don't see yourself clearly at all do you?"

The two of them had had this conversation many times before, and as much as she wanted desperately to believe him that he really truly loved her, she couldn't help her insecurities. After all, she was completely ordinary, while he was practically a God among men.

And her past had taught her never to trust in the promises of beautiful men. It was true she had never really dated before coming to Forks, but that didn't mean she hadn't had friends. Not many, but the ones she did have were like family to her.

And they hadn't been precisely normal either. They were so much like the others here today, and she had blindly accepted their friendship, their love, and they had left her behind in the end.

She couldn't help fearing the same might happen here, with Edward and his family, who so much reminded her of the ones she had lost all those years ago.

She wouldn't argue with him, not again, but the truth was she wasn't sure she would ever truly believe that this perfect man was really hers.

Everyone was waiting for some kind of a response from Bella, but she was completely lost in her own thoughts and memories, so after a moment, Jacob continued reading.

 **So I shouldn't be at all anxious to see him today.**

 **It took every ounce of my concentration to make it down the icy brick driveway alive. I almost lost my balance when I finally got to the truck, but I managed to cling to the side mirror and save myself. Clearly, today was going to be nightmarish.**

 **Driving to school, I distracted myself from my fear of falling and my unwanted speculations about Edward Cullen by thinking about Mike and Eric, and the obvious difference in how teenage boys responded to me here.**

 **I was sure I looked exactly the same as I had in Phoenix. Maybe it was just that the boys back home had watched me pass slowly through all the awkward phases of adolescence and still thought of me that way. Perhaps it was because I was a novelty here, where novelties were few and far between. Possibly my crippling clumsiness was seen as endearing rather than pathetic, casting me as a damsel in distress.**

"Or maybe Bells," Jacob stopped reading and looked at her very seriously, "It's because you are beautiful."

Edward was jealous, hearing him speak of her that way, even if he completely agreed with his statement. Jasper felt this and couldn't help the chuckle that escaped in response.

Bella just blushed and ignored his comment, refusing to correct him on his obvious error.

 **Whatever the reason, Mike's puppy dog behavior and Eric's apparent rivalry with him were disconcerting. I wasn't sure if I didn't prefer being ignored.**

 **My truck seemed to have no problem with the black ice that covered the roads. I drove very slowly, though, not wanting to carve a path of destruction through Main Street.**

 **When I got out of my truck at school, I saw why I'd had so little trouble. Something silver caught my eye, and I walked to the back of the truck - carefully holding the side for support - to examine my tires. There were thin chains crisscrossed in diamond shapes around them. Charlie had gotten up who knows how early to put snow chains on my truck. My throat suddenly felt tight. I wasn't used to being taken care of, and Charlie's unspoken concern caught me by surprise.**

"It really meant a lot to me," she told her father, "I don't think I ever properly thanked you for it, but I really was grateful." 'Renee never would have done that for me' she added silently, glad Edward couldn't hear her.

"Of course Bells," Charlie said, blushing again.

Paul listened to the short exchange with growing curiosity, and concern. Bella really never had anyone to look after her at all before coming to Forks did she? Renee was obviously not winning any 'mother of the year' awards, but the fact that no one had ever really taken care of this girl was truly sad, and made him want to reach out to her in some way, but he kept silent for the time being.

 **I was standing by the back corner of the truck, struggling to fight back the sudden wave of emotion the snow chains had brought on, when I heard an odd sound.**

 **It was a high-pitched screech, and it was fast becoming painfully loud. I looked up, startled.**

 **I saw several things simultaneously. Nothing was moving in slow motion, the way it does in the movies. Instead, the adrenaline rush seemed to make my brain work much faster, and I was able to absorb in clear detail several things at once.**

 **Edward Cullen was standing four cars down from me, staring at me in horror. His face stood out from a sea of faces, all frozen in the same mask of shock. But of more immediate importance was the dark blue van that was skidding, tires locked and squealing against the brakes, spinning wildly across the ice of the parking lot. It was going to hit the back corner of my truck, and I was standing between them. I didn't even have time to close my eyes.**

"Wait," Charlie interrupted, "I don't understand. Edward was standing right next to you that day, and he pulled you out of the way before you could get hurt. That's what you told me."

Bella looked down, ashamed that she lied to her father, even if it was a small white lie meant to protect Edward.

Before anyone else could comment on the new information, or the unpleasant mood that had settled over the room as a result, Emmett's voice rang out, "Way to spoil the ending Charlie," he complained good-naturedly, "At least half the people here don't know what happened. Just let them hear the story. Bella's mind seems to explain everything as we go."

 **Just before I heard the shattering crunch of the van folding around the truck bed, something hit me, hard, but not from the direction I was expecting. My head cracked against the icy blacktop, and I felt something solid and cold pinning me to the ground. I was lying on the pavement behind the tan car I'd parked next to.**

 **But I didn't have a chance to notice anything else, because the van was still coming. It had curled gratingly around the end of the truck and, still spinning and sliding, was about to collide with me again.**

 **A low oath made me aware that someone was with me, and the voice was impossible not to recognize. Two long, white hands shot out protectively in front of me, and the van shuddered to a stop a foot from my face, the large hands fitting providentially into a deep dent in the side of the van's body.**

 **Then his hands moved so fast they blurred. One was suddenly gripping under the body of the van, and something was dragging me, swinging my legs around like a rag doll's, till they hit the tire of the tan car. A groaning metallic thud hurt my ears, and the van settled, glass popping, onto the asphalt - exactly where, a second ago, my legs had been.**

"Wow Bellsy," Emmett commented, "That van really had it out for you. I saw the whole thing happen, but hearing it the way you describe it, it's like the thing was chasing you around corners, determined to crush you."

"It sort of felt like it at the time," Bella agreed, laughing.

 **It was absolutely silent for one long second before the screaming began. In the abrupt bedlam, I could hear more than one person shouting my name. But more clearly than all the yelling, I could hear Edward Cullen's low, frantic voice in my ear.**

 **"Bella? Are you all right?"**

 **"I'm fine." My voice sounded strange. I tried to sit up, and realized he was holding me against the side of his body in an iron grasp.**

 **"Be careful," he warned as I struggled. "I think you hit your head pretty hard."**

 **I became aware of a throbbing ache centered above my left ear.**

 **"Ow," I said, surprised.**

 **"That's what I thought." His voice, amazingly, sounded like he was suppressing laughter.**

"I was," Edward admitted, "Only you could smash your head against pavement, and not notice that it hurt until someone pointed it out to you."

"Well I'm sorry if I was a tad bit distracted by you lifting a van off my legs, and didn't notice the little bump on my head," she replied, only mildly annoyed with being laughed at, "We both know I've had far worse than a bump on the head."

And with that comment, all laughter was lost. The Cullens knew she had had far worse since, and that was sobering enough, but the way she phrased it, made it sound like she reacted the way she did that day because she had been seriously injured before coming to Forks. So, what had happened?

Jacob started again before anyone could comment further. They would have to ask her about this later.

 **"How in the..." I trailed off, trying to clear my head, get my bearings. "How did you get over here so fast?"**

 **"I was standing right next to you, Bella," he said, his tone serious again.**

 **I turned to sit up, and this time he let me, releasing his hold around my waist and sliding as far from me as he could in the limited space. I looked at his concerned, innocent expression and was disoriented again by the force of his gold-colored eyes. What was I asking him?**

 **And then they found us, a crowd of people with tears streaming down their faces, shouting at each other, shouting at us.**

 **"Don't move," someone instructed.**

 **"Get Tyler out of the van!" someone else shouted.**

 **There was a flurry of activity around us. I tried to get up, but Edward's cold hand pushed my shoulder down.**

 **"Just stay put for now."**

 **"But it's cold," I complained. It surprised me when he chuckled under his breath. There was an edge to the sound.**

"Seriously Bella?" Jared asked, incredulous, "Out of everything that just happened, you're concerned about the cold?"

"You all have heard enough of my inner dialog at this point to know I really don't like the cold," she defended herself, "And the ground was covered in ice and snow."

"Seriously need to sort out your priorities hun," Charlie told her. Everyone around her nodded their agreement, to which she simply huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Just keep reading Jake."

 **"You were over there," I suddenly remembered, and his chuckle stopped short. "You were by your car."**

 **His expression turned hard. "No, I wasn't."**

 **"I saw you." All around us was chaos. I could hear the gruffer voices of adults arriving on the scene. But I obstinately held on to our argument; I was right, and he was going to admit it.**

"So stubborn," Edward added helpfully, but his voice wasn't annoyed in the slightest. He found her stubborn streak absolutely adorable now.

 **"Bella, I was standing with you, and I pulled you out of the way." He unleashed the full, devastating power of his eyes on me, as if trying to communicate something crucial.**

 **"No." I set my jaw.**

 **The gold in his eyes blazed. "Please, Bella."**

 **"Why?" I demanded.**

 **"Trust me," he pleaded, his soft voice overwhelming.**

"You risked everything to save her," Charlie realized, "You could have been exposed. Your whole family could have been exposed. And you risked it all to save her life. The van would have killed her," his voice was full of gratitude as he surmised just how close his little girl had come to being roadkill.

"There is nothing I wouldn't risk to protect her Charlie," he answered, his eyes never leaving his Bella, "She is my everything."

Sam and Jared instinctively gazed on their imprints as he spoke. They knew exactly what it felt like to be willing to do absolutely anything to protect the ones they loved. In that moment, the wolves began to see that there was more to the Cullens than they had always believed. They were capable of love…


	11. Chapter 11 Phenomenon Part 2

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 11 – Phenomenon Part 2**

Jasper had been keeping a close eye on all the emotions in the room all morning. It had been a complete whirlwind, and he was becoming more and more convinced that Bella was somehow projecting her emotions to the group, as they all seemed to follow her lead over and over again.

So, he wasn't overly surprised, though he still didn't understand it, when the wolves seemed to literally feel Bella's love for Edward as he spoke.

What did surprise him, however, was their response. All three of them felt her love, and were suddenly filled with confusion, disbelief, and even shame. What were they thinking? He really wished in that moment that he had his brother's gift. He would have to ask Edward about all of this later.

Hearing Jasper's questions, Edward focused on the wolves, wanting to know the answers too. And realized that in hearing him speak about Bella, and somehow feeling her love – something he very much wanted explained – they were beginning to realize that she was in fact his mate, something they had completely discounted the possibility of before.

The wolves had always believed that the mating bond in vampires was purely physical. They knew that a mate would avenge their partner's death, and that such companionship was common in their world, but they had never seen it as a bond of love. They didn't even think vampires were capable of love.

So hearing him recall his desire to protect his mate, and express his love and commitment to her, the wolves were beginning to question everything they thought they knew about the Cullens, and vampires in general.

Sam and Jared were both looking at their imprints, their mates, with absolute love and adoration, thinking about all they would do to protect them. And they couldn't help drawing the comparison to how he was with Bella. Could he really truly feel for her as strongly as she clearly felt for him? Could it really compare to the bond they felt with their imprints, their soulmates? And what did that mean for the other mated couples in the Cullen family?

All of this transpired in a matter of seconds, without anyone speaking aloud, and to the humans in the room, it was as if nothing happened. But to Edward and Jasper, and to the wolves, this was an important moment in beginning to understand each other. Maybe SM's plan to bring them all together had some merit after all.

Edward was smiling at that thought when Jacob began reading again, as if nothing had happened.

 **I could hear the sirens now. "Will you promise to explain everything to me later?"**

 **"Fine," he snapped, abruptly exasperated.**

 **"Fine," I repeated angrily.**

 **It took six EMTs and two teachers - Mr. Varner and Coach Clapp - to shift the van far enough away from us to bring the stretchers in. Edward vehemently refused his, and I tried to do the same, but the traitor told them I'd hit my head and probably had a concussion. I almost died of humiliation when they put on the neck brace. It looked like the entire school was there, watching soberly as they loaded me in the back of the ambulance. Edward got to ride in the front. It was maddening.**

 **To make matters worse, Chief Swan arrived before they could get me safely away.**

"Oh, so I'm Chief Swan now, am I?" Charlie teased Bella, trying to lighten back up the mood, while also truly curious. Was he Dad to her, or Charlie, or Chief Swan? He was a little hurt that she could think of him that way, even if it was in her head and she didn't mean anything by it.

"Whatever poppa-cop," she shot back, laughing at the look on his face. She really did love him, and she was finding she thoroughly enjoyed this new nickname from her… sister? Daughter? Whatever.

 **"Bella!" he yelled in panic when he recognized me on the stretcher.**

 **"I'm completely fine, Char - Dad," I sighed. "There's nothing wrong with me."**

 **He turned to the closest EMT for a second opinion. I tuned him out to consider the jumble of inexplicable images churning chaotically in my head. When they'd lifted me away from the car, I had seen the deep dent in the tan car's bumper - a very distinct dent that fit the contours of Edward's shoulders... as if he had braced himself against the car with enough force to damage the metal frame...**

 **And then there was his family, looking on from the distance, with expressions that ranged from disapproval to fury but held no hint of concern for their brother's safety.**

The Cullen 'kids' looked appropriately embarrassed as the Quileutes shot them confused and irritated looks.

Jasper spoke up for the group before someone could comment, "We didn't know Bella yet, or why Edward had saved her. All we knew was that he had risked all of us, and that, from what we heard of their conversation, Bella was not going to let her suspicions go. We weren't angry, so much as afraid of what all of it might mean for us."

"It's ok Jazz," Bella assured him, even as the tribesmen still glared at him and the others, "That's perfectly understandable given the circumstances."

 **I tried to think of a logical solution that could explain what I had just seen - a solution that excluded the assumption that I was insane.**

 **Naturally, the ambulance got a police escort to the county hospital. I felt ridiculous the whole time they were unloading me. What made it worse was that Edward simply glided through the hospital doors under his own power. I ground my teeth together.**

 **They put me in the emergency room, a long room with a line of beds separated by pastel-patterned curtains. A nurse put a pressure cuff on my arm and a thermometer under my tongue. Since no one bothered pulling the curtain around to give me some privacy, I decided I wasn't obligated to wear the stupid-looking neck brace anymore. When the nurse walked away, I quickly unfastened the Velcro and threw it under the bed.**

 **There was another flurry of hospital personnel, another stretcher brought to the bed next to me. I recognized Tyler Crowley from my Government class beneath the bloodstained bandages wrapped tightly around his head. Tyler looked a hundred times worse than I felt. But he was staring anxiously at me.**

 **"Bella, I'm so sorry!"**

 **"I'm fine, Tyler - you look awful, are you all right?" As we spoke, nurses began unwinding his soiled bandages, exposing a myriad of shallow slices all over his forehead and left cheek.**

 **He ignored me. "I thought I was going to kill you! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong..." He winced as one nurse started dabbing at his face.**

 **"Don't worry about it; you missed me."**

 **"How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone..."**

 **"Umm... Edward pulled me out of the way."**

 **He looked confused. "Who?"**

 **"Edward Cullen - he was standing next to me." I'd always been a terrible liar; I didn't sound convincing at all.**

"You never do," Emmett added, helpfully, "Honestly, I still don't understand how anyone believed you."

"Most people would rather accept the lie than dig for the truth," Bella replied, fully aware that this was just further proof that she did not react like most people would.

"You never seem to," Edward muttered, eerily echoing her thoughts. He wasn't upset with her reaction though, not anymore, because if she hadn't pressed him for answers and kept digging, they wouldn't be together now. And he would never give up what they had together now. Right?

 **"Cullen? I didn't see him... wow, it was all so fast, I guess. Is he okay?"**

 **"I think so. He's here somewhere, but they didn't make him use a stretcher."**

 **I knew I wasn't crazy. What had happened? There was no way to explain away what I'd seen.**

 **They wheeled me away then, to X-ray my head. I told them there was nothing wrong, and I was right. Not even a concussion. I asked if I could leave, but the nurse said I had to talk to a doctor first. So I was trapped in the ER, waiting, harassed by Tyler's constant apologies and promises to make it up to me. No matter how many times I tried to convince him I was fine, he continued to torment himself. Finally, I closed my eyes and ignored him. He kept up a remorseful mumbling.**

 **"Is she sleeping?" a musical voice asked.**

"So," Edward began, a light smile tugging at his lips, "You think my voice is musical?"

Bella blushed profusely, much to the amusement of everyone, but didn't answer, and Jacob saved her from any further embarrassment by continuing before Emmett could comment.

 **My eyes flew open.**

 **Edward was standing at the foot of my bed, smirking. I glared at him. It wasn't easy - it would have been more natural to ogle.**

 **"Hey, Edward, I'm really sorry -" Tyler began.**

 **Edward lifted a hand to stop him.**

 **"No blood, no foul," he said, flashing his brilliant teeth. He moved to sit on the edge of Tyler's bed, facing me. He smirked again.**

 **"So, what's the verdict?" he asked me.**

 **"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but they won't let me go," I complained. "How come you aren't strapped to a gurney like the rest of us?"**

 **"It's all about who you know," he answered. "But don't worry, I came to spring you."**

"You know, when you said that, all I could picture was you using your mysterious super speed to sneak me out of the emergency room without anyone noticing," Bella told him, laughing at her mental image of a proper prison escape.

"My solution was far more mundane I think," he answered, though he very much liked that she had wanted him to whisk her away, even then, and that his strange speed hadn't frightened her at all.

 **Then a doctor walked around the corner, and my mouth fell open. He was young, he was blond... and he was handsomer than any movie star I'd ever seen. He was pale, though, and tired-looking, with circles under his eyes. From Charlie's description, this had to be Edward's father.**

 **"So, Miss Swan," Dr. Cullen said in a remarkably appealing voice, "how are you feeling?"**

Now Emmett was doubled over laughing, much to the confusion of everyone else. Seeing their stunned expressions, he tried to explain, "Bellsy thinks Eddie-boy here has a musical voice, but it's Dad that she describes as appealing…"

Carlisle and Bella both looked distinctly uncomfortable at the fool's commentary, but neither was forced to come up with any sort of reply because just then Rosalie smacked her husband upside the head.

"You big oaf, he's like a father to her!"

"Thanks Rose," Bella stage-whispered before Jake resumed reading.

 **"I'm fine," I said, for the last time, I hoped.**

 **He walked to the lightboard on the wall over my head, and turned it on.**

 **"Your X-rays look good," he said. "Does your head hurt? Edward said you hit it pretty hard."**

 **"It's fine," I repeated with a sigh, throwing a quick scowl toward Edward.**

 **The doctor's cool fingers probed lightly along my skull. He noticed when I winced.**

 **"Tender?" he asked.**

 **"Not really." I'd had worse.**

Though none of the Cullens doubted that she had in fact had several major injuries over the years as a result of her chronic clumsiness, and danger magnet status, the comment reminded them again of their concerns that there might be more darkness in her past than she had ever let on. They shared a significant look between them which clearly said they were all thinking the same thing and this needed to be addressed with Bella sooner rather than later.

 **I heard a chuckle, and looked over to see Edward's patronizing smile. My eyes narrowed.**

 **"Well, your father is in the waiting room - you can go home with him now. But come back if you feel dizzy or have trouble with your eyesight at all."**

 **"Can't I go back to school?" I asked, imagining Charlie trying to be attentive.**

 **"Maybe you should take it easy today."**

 **I glanced at Edward. "Does he get to go to school?"**

 **"Someone has to spread the good news that we survived," Edward said smugly.**

 **"Actually," Dr. Cullen corrected, "most of the school seems to be in the waiting room."**

 **"Oh no," I moaned, covering my face with my hands.**

 **Dr. Cullen raised his eyebrows. "Do you want to stay?"**

 **"No, no!" I insisted, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and hopping down quickly. Too quickly - I staggered, and Dr. Cullen caught me. He looked concerned.**

 **"I'm fine," I assured him again. No need to tell him my balance problems had nothing to do with hitting my head.**

 **"Take some Tylenol for the pain," he suggested as he steadied me.**

 **"It doesn't hurt that bad," I insisted.**

 **"It sounds like you were extremely lucky," Dr. Cullen said, smiling as he signed my chart with a flourish.**

 **"Lucky Edward happened to be standing next to me," I amended with a hard glance at the subject of my statement.**

 **"Oh, well, yes," Dr. Cullen agreed, suddenly occupied with the papers in front of him. Then he looked away, at Tyler, and walked to the next bed. My intuition flickered; the doctor was in on it.**

"I really didn't do a very good job of playing that off, did I?" Carlisle mused. He should have been quite good at lying about things like this after more than three centuries of interacting with humans in this new life, but nothing ever seemed to get by Bella, and he certainly hadn't helped things any that day.

"No, you really didn't," Bella teased, "Though at the time I simply assumed that meant you were aware of whatever Edward's secret was, not that you, yourself, actually shared in it."

"I suppose that would make sense," he conceded, still disappointed in himself for the lapse that helped contribute to the potential exposure of his family.

 **"I'm afraid that you'll have to stay with us just a little bit longer," he said to Tyler, and began checking his cuts.**

 **As soon as the doctor's back was turned, I moved to Edward's side.**

 **"Can I talk to you for a minute?" I hissed under my breath. He took a step back from me, his jaw suddenly clenched.**

 **"Your father is waiting for you," he said through his teeth.**

 **I glanced at Dr. Cullen and Tyler.**

 **"I'd like to speak with you alone, if you don't mind," I pressed.**

 **He glared, and then turned his back and strode down the long room. I nearly had to run to keep up. As soon as we turned the corner into a short hallway, he spun around to face me.**

 **"What do you want?" he asked, sounding annoyed. His eyes were cold.**

 **His unfriendliness intimidated me. My words came out with less severity than I'd intended. "You owe me an explanation," I reminded him.**

 **"I saved your life - I don't owe you anything."**

"You really didn't," Bella admitted, "Anyone else would have just counted their blessings and walked away, happy the van didn't smash them. But I just couldn't stop myself. I had to know the truth, and more than that, I had to know why you had risked exposing yourself to save me."

"You are worth the risk, love," he soothed, "Always."

She didn't really believe that, as much as she desperately wanted to, but she let it go, not wanting to argue with him in front of everyone.

 **I flinched back from the resentment in his voice. "You promised."**

 **"Bella, you hit your head, you don't know what you're talking about." His tone was cutting.**

 **My temper flared now, and I glared defiantly at him. "There's nothing wrong with my head."**

 **He glared back. "What do you want from me, Bella?"**

 **"I want to know the truth," I said. "I want to know why I'm lying for you."**

 **"What do you think happened?" he snapped.**

 **It came out in a rush.**

 **"All I know is that you weren't anywhere near me - Tyler didn't see you, either, so don't tell me I hit my head too hard. That van was going to crush us both - and it didn't, and your hands left dents in the side of it - and you left a dent in the other car, and you're not hurt at all - and the van should have smashed my legs, but you were holding it up..." I could hear how crazy it sounded, and I couldn't continue. I was so mad I could feel the tears coming; I tried to force them back by grinding my teeth together.**

 **He was staring at me incredulously. But his face was tense, defensive.**

 **"You think I lifted a van off you?" His tone questioned my sanity, but it only made me more suspicious. It was like a perfectly delivered line by a skilled actor.**

 **I merely nodded once, jaw tight.**

 **"Nobody will believe that, you know." His voice held an edge of derision now.**

 **"I'm not going to tell anybody." I said each word slowly, carefully controlling my anger.**

 **Surprise flitted across his face. "Then why does it matter?"**

 **"It matters to me," I insisted. "I don't like to lie - so there'd better be a good reason why I'm doing it."**

 **"Can't you just thank me and get over it?"**

 **"Thank you." I waited, fuming and expectant.**

 **"You're not going to let it go, are you?"**

 **"No."**

 **"In that case... I hope you enjoy disappointment."**

Billy couldn't help himself from laughing at this, "Did you actually believe for a second that she wouldn't seek out answers on her own, even if you didn't tell her the truth right then? This is Bella Swan we are talking about here; she is just way to curious and way to observant for her own good. There was no way you were keeping this from her."

"I had to try," Edward defended, "It wasn't just me at risk if someone found out the truth, but my whole family. I couldn't exactly start prattling off our most guarded secrets to her in the middle of an emergency room hallway."

"She never would have told anyone," Charlie argued, defending Bella, "She has proven that much."

"We obviously didn't know that at the time," Jasper countered, "And Bella was still essentially a stranger at this point. How were we to have any idea she would react the way she did?"

"Um…guys?" Bella chimed in, looking slightly annoyed, "I'm sitting right here you know…"

"Sorry Bells," Billy and Charlie said simultaneously, before Jacob started reading again, shaking his head at their fathers.

 **We scowled at each other in silence. I was the first to speak, trying to keep myself focused. I was in danger of being distracted by his livid, glorious face. It was like trying to stare down a destroying angel.**

"Is someone taking note of all of these nicknames," Paul jested, lightly punching Edward in the arm, "She really is creative when it comes to you guys."

The gesture was entirely innocent, and it didn't seem as though Paul had thought anything of it, but its impact was enormous. He had been playfully teasing a vampire. He had hit a vampire without inciting a fight, like any normal pair of teenage boys talking about a girl.

For one moment, Paul, a werewolf with a legendary temper, had reacted to Edward, a vampire who was meant to be his natural enemy, as if he were human. It was the first step down the long road towards friendship.

 **"Why did you even bother?" I asked frigidly.**

 **He paused, and for a brief moment his stunning face was unexpectedly vulnerable.**

 **"I don't know," he whispered.**

 **And then he turned his back on me and walked away.**

 **I was so angry, it took me a few minutes until I could move. When I could walk, I made my way slowly to the exit at the end of the hallway.**

 **The waiting room was more unpleasant than I'd feared. It seemed like every face I knew in Forks was there, staring at me. Charlie rushed to my side; I put up my hands.**

 **"There's nothing wrong with me," I assured him sullenly. I was still aggravated, not in the mood for chitchat.**

 **"What did the doctor say?"**

 **"Dr. Cullen saw me, and he said I was fine and I could go home." I sighed. Mike and Jessica and Eric were all there, beginning to converge on us. "Let's go," I urged.**

 **Charlie put one arm behind my back, not quite touching me, and led me to the glass doors of the exit. I waved sheepishly at my friends, hoping to convey that they didn't need to worry anymore. It was a huge relief- the first time I'd ever felt that way - to get into the cruiser.**

 **We drove in silence. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I barely knew Charlie was there. I was positive that Edward's defensive behavior in the hall was a confirmation of the bizarre things I still could hardly believe I'd witnessed.**

"It was," Alice agreed, "And don't think we didn't all give him hell for it the second we got home."

 **When we got to the house, Charlie finally spoke.**

 **"Um... you'll need to call Renée." He hung his head, guilty.**

 **I was appalled. "You told Mom!"**

 **"Sorry."**

 **I slammed the cruiser's door a little harder than necessary on my way out.**

 **My mom was in hysterics, of course. I had to tell her I felt fine at least thirty times before she would calm down. She begged me to come home - forgetting the fact that home was empty at the moment - but her pleas were easier to resist than I would have thought. I was consumed by the mystery Edward presented. And more than a little obsessed by Edward himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I wasn't as eager to escape Forks as I should be, as any normal, sane person would be.**

 **I decided I might as well go to bed early that night. Charlie continued to watch me anxiously, and it was getting on my nerves. I stopped on my way to grab three Tylenol from the bathroom. They did help, and, as the pain eased, I drifted to sleep.**

 **That was the first night I dreamed of Edward Cullen.**

"Oh God!" Bella yelped, suddenly panicked, "Please tell me SM did not include detailed descriptions of my dreams in these books." She looked absolute terrified, which only piqued the curiosity of everyone in the room. What was it that she didn't want them to hear about? They were already getting a front row seat to her inner most thoughts. What could be more private than her unspoken thoughts about the man she loved?

"What's wrong Bella," Emmett began, ready to give his sister all sorts of hell, "Afraid we might be reading one of your sex dreams?" He was laughing, along with Jasper, and the wolves, but Charlie looked like he might have a stroke at that thought. He really did not need to hear about that, at all.

"Jacob," Bella continued, completely ignoring her foolish brother, "Does it include the dreams?"

"I don't know Bells," he answered truthfully, secretly enjoying her reaction, "That's the end of the chapter."

"My turn!" Emmett yelled, snatching the book. If there was going to be a sex dream, he wanted to be the one to read it, so he knew there would be no editing, and he would have plenty of ammunition for the teasing he was ready to unleash on Bella and Edward both.


	12. Chapter 12 My Dreams Are Real

**Chapter 12 – My Dreams Are Real…**

As Emmett grabbed the book and prepared to start the next chapter, Bella was in a full-on panic.

SM had turned her world upside down, exposing her inner-most thoughts to everyone, forcing her to put her human father in danger from the Volturi by telling him about all of this, and dragging her into a vampire-werewolf rivalry she hadn't even been aware existed.

Yet, she wasn't really upset about any of this. She somehow felt like she could trust this SM, even though she really had no reason to. So she had gone along with everything, and taken it all in stride.

But this was a step too far. Her dreams were off limits, and if this SM really knew her as well as she claimed, she would have known that! Bella had placed her trust in this stranger who had the nerve to call her sister, and now she felt betrayed.

Emmett was happy to believe that her reaction was one of embarrassment over some fantasy about her and Edward that she didn't want read in front of her whole family. And that would have been bad enough. That would be truly mortifying.

This was worse. Way worse.

How was she supposed to explain to them all that her dreams gave her clues about who and what they all were? That it sometimes felt like there was a voice in her head, helping her work things out, giving her little bits of information she never could have gotten on her own? That her dreams were so real, she sometimes wasn't sure if she was asleep or awake, and that sometimes her dreams took on a vision-like quality that made them impossible to ignore?

Most of the dreams she had had about Edward and the Cullens since coming to Forks were fairly minor, with only small details that really might stand out as unusual, nothing that was strictly impossible for her to know about. Though she was sure that certain things would still catch their attention.

But what about dreams she hadn't had yet? Bella had never even considered when this whole thing started that SM might know about her little gift, if you could really call it that, and so she hadn't considered what she would do if it was exposed. Now, she was freaking out.

Would she be exposed? Would they want to know about the dreams that had led her to finally decide to come to Forks in the first place? Or about what other creatures of the dark they had shone a light on in her past? What if Edward thought she was a freak? What if he found out about her dream visions and decided he didn't want her anymore?

Bella was hyperventilating by the time Emmett shook her shoulder lightly, pulling her from her inner questioning. He, Jasper and Edward had all been trying to get her attention for almost a minute, but she was so lost in her fears that she hadn't even noticed.

Jasper was throwing calm, peace, and love at Bella in tidal waves, but she had completely blocked herself off from him, and was simply reflecting the positive emotions back at him, causing most of them to ricochet around the room and into the others there. How the hell was she blocking him?

It was clear from her face, and her racing heart and ragged breathing that something was wrong, but he couldn't feel her emotions at all, and she wasn't accepting anything he was trying to send her. From the moment Jacob mentioned the dreams, it was like she had flipped a switch and was now completely blocked to him. It was fascinating. And frightening.

"Bella?" Emmett nudged her shoulder again, "There's another letter from SM for you," he explained, looking worried, "Seems she wants to check in and comment practically every chapter or so, and she doesn't like the rest of us nearly as much as you." He was trying to smile and lighten back up the mood which had been thoroughly dampened by her obvious inner turmoil, but it was having little effect.

"Right," Bella said, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice as she took the letter from Emmett and began reading aloud for everyone as she had before.

 **Bella,**

 **I need you to calm down honey. It's all going to be ok. I know you didn't want me to write about your dreams, especially not ones like this one, but they are important to your story.**

 **I know you don't really understand them, and I know that because of everything that has happened, with Lucas, with Ian, with the pride in Arizona, you are afraid of how everyone will react if they learn the truth. I understand, and I'm sorry for putting you in this position.**

 **But you don't need to hide with them. These people are your family, all of them, and you can trust them, with this, and with anything. Your dreams are a gift, but they are something you need to accept and embrace if you are going to survive everything that is to come. Let Alice help you. Hell, let Old Quil help you. Just don't shut them out.**

 **Your family has always had magic in your blood. It's a part of who you are. And the dreams are just the tip of the iceberg. So, stop fighting it. Stop hiding it.**

 **Only when you accept who you really are, will your loved ones truly be saved.**

 **With love always,**

 **SM**

As Bella finished reading the letter, she set it down in her lap, letting her eyes fall to the floor as tears streamed steadily down her face. Why was SM doing this to her? What good could possibly come from sharing this?

It took everyone a solid minute to wrap their heads around what SM had actually just told them.

Bella's dreams were a gift? What kind of gift? Why hadn't she ever said anything? Didn't she trust them, after everything they had been through together, and everything they had told her about themselves?

Who was Lucas? And who was Ian? And what the hell did SM mean by the Pride? Were these the mysterious supernaturals from Bella's past, or someone else entirely? They still didn't know who SM or Nessie were, and now there were even more names being thrown around. What the hell was going on?

No one knew what to say, or what to ask. None of them had ever really seen Bella break down like this. She was always impossibly strong and sure, taking everything this world threw at her in stride. Seeing her trembling and crying, unable to meet their gaze, was so far from anything they had ever expected from her they didn't know how to react.

Slowly, her tears stopped flowing, her breathing evened out, and Jasper felt her guard drop, revealing a steady stream of numb and calm. She took two deep breaths, centering herself, and then she looked up, right into Edward's eyes and spoke.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, ashamed at having broken down in front of them all, "I have no idea how to explain this…" Her words trailed off as she continued to gaze into Edward's eyes, silently begging him to help her.

"Love, there's nothing to be sorry for," he assured her, pulling Bella firmly onto his lap and holding her close, "We have all been so concerned about our secrets coming to light today, that I don't think any of us really saw how hard this has been on you. Everyone has secrets, including every one of us, and no one is going to judge you here, ok?"

She was fighting back tears again, so she simply nodded her understanding. He wouldn't pressure her to explain everything right away, or ever if that was what she chose, and he accepted her, no matter what. She really needed to believe that right now.

"I haven't told you everything about my past," Bella began slowly, unsure of how to go about this, and incredibly nervous.

She had the undivided attention of every person there, and she could see the questions swimming behind each of their eyes. Where to start?

"It's ok Bells," Charlie said when her pause began to stretch on, "We can talk about all of that later. You're not the only one here who hasn't shared their histories. Hell, with the number of immortals in the room, there's got to be a lot of history to go around," he laughed lightly at this, and felt gratified when Bella smiled, "We can all trade stories later, or the books will explain them. Don't worry about that. You don't need to feel pressured to talk about anything you don't want to."

Jasper felt relief and gratitude rolling off Bella, and was about to send it to Charlie so he knew she was happy with his approach, when he realized she had beaten him to the punch. He really wished he could just ask her out right what she was doing and how without having to explain his own ability. Those questions would have to wait though.

"Lucas," Bella began again, her voice shaky, but louder than before, "Lucas and Ian were like brothers to me once, and the pride were like the sisters I never had growing up. A lot of things happened, and it's all a very long story, one I would frankly prefer not to tell right now, but if I'm going to explain about the dreams, you will need the basics."

"Alright dear," Esme soothed her, and the whole circle nodded, resisting the urge to start hurtling questions at her, "Take your time."

"When SM refers to the pride, she is talking about a pride of werecats I became involved with while living with Renee in Phoenix. They call themselves a pride, much in the same way you all," gesturing to the wolves and their imprints, "refer to yourselves as the pack."

"I've never encountered a werecat," Carlisle commented softly, not really wanting to interrupt, but burning with questions. In more than three centuries on this earth he had never met a shifter cat, and had only ever heard the rarest of whispers about their existence. So, the fact that Bella had someone come into contact with not one, but an entire pride, was unbelievable.

"I really don't know all that much about them as a species, but the ones I knew reminded me a lot of Quileutes. They were born cats, not bitten in or otherwise changed. There first transformation, or um…" she trailed off, looking to Sam questioningly.

"We call it phasing," he supplied, understanding her unspoken question.

"Right. They all phase for the first time on their 12th birthdays. It's simpler for them to deal with because everyone in their pride, their family really, transf- phases and they can predict when it will happen to the day. Their bloodline is completely pure, because only imprinted couples are permitted to have children so…"

"You know about imprinting?" Emily interjected, voicing all of their surprise. Though, thinking back, she hadn't questioned Paul's use of the word earlier so it made sense that she had heard it before.

"Like I said," Bella continued, "They are a lot like the pack, a sister species I suppose," she mused.

"I was 11 when the pride moved to Phoenix, and their youngest cat, Sasha, became my best friend in school. She and I were in the same grade and she hadn't turned 12 yet, so she was still like me. Her older sisters, Sonya and Sita, were 14 and 17 though so they had already gone through the transformation before I met them."

"How did you find out about them?" Jacob asked. They all had the same question of course. She seemed to always be able to uncover everyone's secrets, secrets that everyone else in the world remained blissfully unaware of for their whole lives. So how did she always seem to know?

"That's where the dreams come in," Bella admitted, suddenly very nervous again. She really didn't want to do this, but SM had given her no other option, so she put on a brave face and prepared to explain.

"I don't understand," Alice voiced, no doubt speaking for most everyone.

"You would actually probably understand better than anyone else here," Bella told her honestly. After all, Alice had visions of the future. She knew things no one should know, and she saw them in a way no one else could. "For as long as I can remember, I have had extremely vivid dreams."

Everyone was waiting for her to continue as she really wasn't making any sense.

"It's ok Bella," Kim urged her on, taking her hand and squeezing it reassuringly.

"My dreams speak to me. It's hard to explain. It's not like visions of the future or some disembodied voice telling me the answers to all my endless questions. It's… God, I have no idea how to explain this." She was incredibly frustrated, and still scared of their reactions.

"Why don't you tell us about the dream of the pride?" Billy suggested, surprisingly not questioning her sanity in the slightest, "Maybe that will help us understand."

"Ok, um, well it was the night before Sasha's 12th birthday. She had been acting weird for days, real jumpy. And then, I had invited her over for a sleepover because I wanted to celebrate before her birthday, just the two of us, and her sisters wouldn't let her come. They told me that things were 'better this way'. I didn't understand why they were pushing me away, and I just wanted my friend back. So anyway, that night I had my first real spirit dream, that's what Sita called them," she explained when she received confused looks at the term.

"Anyway, in the dream, Sasha was alone in the woods, crying, clearly in pain. So, I walked towards her, trying to help her, and suddenly there were these four huge shadows towering over her. I couldn't really see what they were, but from the growling and roaring, they were obviously animals, and large ones. So I called out to Sasha, trying to get her to run before they attacked her, and she just looked at me and said in this eerie voice, 'It's you who should run'. I can still hear it, like she is standing right next to me. It made my skin crawl."

Bella paused, shuddering slightly at the memory, refusing to look into the eyes of those around her. Surely, they were disgusted with her. Maybe not yet, she mused silently, they don't know what it means yet…

"Go on Bella," Jasper urged, really wanting to know what this all meant, sending her confidence and acceptance to help give his words weight.

"So in the dream, I start backing away from her, confused and scared, and her eyes start glowing this bright golden yellow, and she smiles, only she has these crazy long canines. I panic and stumble, clumsy even in my dreams," she laughs lightly at this, "and when I look back up, Sasha is gone, and in her place is a massive saber-tooth tiger, leaning right over the top of me. I woke up screaming."

No one knew what to say. She had had no reason to think that her friend was anything but human. Hell, she had had no reason to even know there was another possibility to consider. Any other teenage girl would have been mad and hurt, and assumed Sasha was made at her about a girl or something.

Not Bella. No, she has some sort of intense prophetic dream that tells her exactly what her friend really was, on the very night that she changed for the first time. That was beyond mad. How were they supposed to respond to that?

"I had never had a dream like that before," she continued, almost as if she were speaking aloud to herself, not really addressing anyone, "I had experienced these strong gut feelings that were never wrong, but I always chalked that up to female intuition. I had woken up with a really bad feeling and just known that I had to do something. I actually had one of those feelings the morning that Tyler's van almost hit me. But as you all read, I considered staying home, and disregarded the feeling. Never a good idea."

They all thought back to the way she had reacted to the ice that morning, with new eyes, and realized she was right.

"But there was no way I could ignore that dream," she continued, "Long and short of it is I confronted Sasha and ended up getting my friend back. The whole pride accepted me, and treated me like family. But I should have known better. The dream didn't just tell me what they were. It was also a warning to stay away, or better yet to run as fast and as far as possible."

"What happened?" Jacob asked, knowing something had clearly happened to make her so emotional about this.

"I never told them about the dream. I don't know why honestly. It was instinctual, keeping it secret, even as they shared everything about their world with me. I felt bad for lying to them, but I just couldn't do it. Then, one night, about six months later, I was staying at their house for the night, and I had another dream. I woke up screaming again, and when they all came to see if I was alright, I warned them about what I saw."

"What was the dream?" Alice asked nervously.

"I had seen," she cut off, looking like she was going to cry again, "I saw Sasha's saber-tooth standing over the lifeless bodies of her parents and sisters. There was so much blood. It was horrible."

"My God…" Sue gasped.

"They took your warning as a threat, didn't they?" Alice asked. She knew what it was like to try to tell someone about one of her visions, especially someone who didn't understand her power. It was often misconstrued.

"Yeah," Bella sighed, "They thought I was a spy sent from their enemies, and that my warning was either meant as a scare tactic of some kind, or as a real warning bubbling up in a moment of guilt for having betrayed them. They just wouldn't listen. I thought if I could just explain to them about the dreams, they would listen to me. I loved them all like family, and I was trying to save their lives!" she was getting irritated by the end of her rant.

"But they didn't listen?" Rosalie asked, picturing Bella losing her whole family, and feeling horrible sorrow for her sister's loss.

"They did, eventually," Bella countered, "But it didn't matter. My warning didn't save them in the end. It just cost me the little time I had left with them."

"What do you mean?" Jared asked, confused. If they heard her warning, why would they push her away? And why hadn't knowledge of the threat coming been enough to prevent it?

"Sonya and Sita recognized what I was describing as being a spirit dream," she explained, "Apparently spirit dreams, and the intuitive knowledge I had experienced, were indicative of dark magic. Something about having a special connection to death and darkness that showed me things others couldn't see."

She hung her head, remembering the looks of horror and anger that had crossed the faces of her friends all those years ago, and desperately wanting never to see those same looks on the faces of her family there with her.

"Bella," Jasper broke the silence, reaching out and lifting her chin gently so she was looking into his eyes, "You have nothing to be ashamed of darlin'. SM is right. These dreams are a gift. They opened your eyes to the world around you, and they gave you a warning for your friends. The fact that they wouldn't accept your help doesn't make what happened to them your fault."

"I didn't kill them Jazz. I know it's not my fault. But the way they reacted to me…" she sounded practically strangled as she cut off, remembering their cruel words as they all started trembling.

"What did they do?" Paul finally asked. He knew what it was like to have family turn on you, to not feel safe in your own skin, and he saw the same look in her eyes as she talked about the pride that he had whenever he spoke of his father. Whatever this was, it went beyond harsh words and lost friendships.

"They transformed, all of them, in that tiny bedroom," she whispered, choking on her tears, now falling freely down her cheeks, "The pack phases for the sole purpose of killing vampires that threaten your territory. Well, the pride transforms for the sole purpose of killing dark magic users…"

The room was suddenly filled with the deafening growls of wolves and blood drinkers. Someone had tried to kill a girl they all cared for, and they had justified it because she tried to save their lives. They were furious!

"I'm ok," Bella assured them all, reminding them this had happened a long time ago, and she was here now, safe with them all, "I got away. I kept waiting for them to come back for me, but they never did, and three weeks later, Sasha showed up on my doorstep and told me the rest of the pride was gone. I never saw her again."

They were all struggling to wrap their heads around everything she had told them. She wasn't quite human. She had some sort of dark magic ability that spoke to her in her dreams. She had known werecats, and had nearly been killed by a pride of them because of her gift. Was that why she was so afraid to tell them all about this? Did she think they were going to turn on her the way the cats had? Was she waiting for someone to lunge at her across the living room?

Edward held her tight to his chest, laying light kisses atop her head as he spoke softly to her, "You never have to be afraid of your gift, love. What they did was horrible, and I am so sorry they tried to hurt you. But we will never turn on you. Do you hear me? I love you, and you never have to be afraid to share these things with me. I swear, on my immortal life, there is absolutely nothing you could tell me that could diminish my love for you. You will never lose me, and none of us will ever hurt you."

And in that moment, any doubts he had left about staying here with her were finally put to rest. Bella was already a part of this world, and she would need help and protection. Leaving would only hurt everyone, and probably get her killed.

"So…" Emmett broke the heavy silence with a hearty laugh, "No sex dreams, then?" He was pouting like a little kid, and everyone started laughing with him.

Bella breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't told them everything, far from it, but she had shared more than she ever had with anyone else, and they had accepted her. Maybe everything would work out after all.


	13. Chapter 13 Do You See Now What I Mean?

**Chapter 13 Do You See Now What I Mean?**

Everyone was still a little shaken by all that had been revealed in this insane turn of events. Had it really been just one morning since this whole thing started?

A morning which had begun with ominous letters from a mysterious seer…

Charlie and Jacob had been introduced to the supernatural world for the first time.

The werewolf pack, and the tribal elders, had been forced to reevaluate everything they thought they knew about the Cullens, and vampires in general.

Edward had been dissuaded from his disastrous plans to leave his mate behind.

And now, Bella had revealed a piece of her past that seemed to change everything.

Needless to say, everyone had questions. No one understood fully what was happening here, or why SM had felt the need to get involved at all.

So, following the bout of nervous laughter Emmett's comment had initiated, they were all silent for a few moments as if absorbing everything that had come to light thus far in this impossible day.

Bella, though still emotional and somewhat uncertain as to how to proceed, was the first to recover. She needed to explain to them somehow what to expect from the dreams SM had likely included in this book, but she didn't really know where to start.

"I told you," she began slowly, shifting uncomfortably when all the eyes in the room landed on her again, "I have had the dreams in one form or another, for as long as I can remember, but I had never had a dream quite as powerful, or as vivid, as the one the night I discovered the pride. And I have not had another of that caliber since."

"Why do you think that is?" Carlisle asked, unable to satiate his curiosity now that he knew there was so much more to their darling Bella than any of them had ever guessed.

"After everything that happened," she answered him, her voice full of sadness at the memory, "I fought the dreams any way I could. I didn't want anything to do with my so-called 'gift'. I hated it. So I ignored it and suppressed it at every chance."

"I don't understand. How?" Alice asked, truly confused. She had no power over her visions. She could seek something specific things out, but there was no guarantee what she would or wouldn't see. And when visions came of their own will, they completely overcame her. She could not simply stop them. It wasn't possible.

Bella seemed to understand the root of Alice's confusion, but didn't comment on the difference directly, as the books had not revealed her gift yet, and she did not wish to force that conversation on her any earlier than necessary. She was still somewhat bitter that SM had forced her to reveal her own gift and didn't want to put Alice in the same situation, even if the books would eventually.

Instead she said, "Most of them are cryptic anyway. Someone I've never seen before and a certain feeling about them. Or a collection of images that don't immediately mean anything to me. Sometimes they're even metaphorical. If I make no effort to unravel them, they hold no meaning to me. And after what happened, I no longer held any desire to work them out."

Old Quil looked thoughtful at this, "That's what you meant? About the feeling you had the morning of the accident at your school, I mean… You had become accustomed to disregarding the feelings and images, so when you saw the ice and were suddenly filled with dread and a desire to stay home, you ignored the warning and went anyway?"

"Essentially, yes." She knew that had been a foolish decision even before she had consciously made it, and she was fully aware looking back that if Edward hadn't been there, it might have been a fatal one. But she couldn't bring herself to regret it. The dreams had caused her enough pain. She didn't want to think about what might have happened if she had allowed them in when she first met the Cullens.

If she had suddenly known what they were, before she had fallen in love with Edward, would she have run the other way and lost out on her new family? Or worse yet, if she had confronted them with that knowledge before they came to care for her, would they have simply eliminated her in order to protect themselves? She shuddered at the thought.

"But if that is the case," Charlie spoke for the first time since this had all been revealed, and to everyone's surprise, he sounded completely at ease with it all, "Why would SM force you to share this with us? Have the dreams become stronger since you came to Forks?"

"Not stronger, so much as I suspect she wants me, and all of you, to take them seriously now. I have made a conscious effort not to read too much into anything I have seen, and evidently that was a mistake SM wishes to rectify. If you didn't know about this, then the dreams might be overlooked as insignificant as we read." Bella knew that probably wouldn't be overly dangerous now, with the dreams she had already had, as she didn't think any of them held anything vital she didn't already know now anyway. But her future dreams might hold the key to fixing things…

"That makes sense I suppose," Billy responded, still trying to figure out exactly what it all meant. SM had said there was magic in her blood, but no one had said outright what she actually was. In fact, he suspected she might not actually know for sure herself. And if this "gift" was something she earned from her family line, what did that mean for Charlie?

His friend did seem a little too unbothered by all of this. He was sure Charlie hadn't known about vampires and werewolves, or about werecats and spirit dreams for that matter, before today. But did that necessarily mean that he didn't know anything about this particular family trait?

"Can I please just read now?" Emmett whined good-naturedly. He was disappointed that there would be no juicy sexual fantasies to terrorize his siblings over, but after all this talk about the dreams, he really was curious. Bella had said the ones about his family were far less direct, but there had to be something interesting there. Or SM wouldn't have made Bella tell them everything before reading about them.

"Sure, Em," Bella responded evenly, far more calm now that everything was out in the open, and no one seemed angry.

 **4\. INVITATIONS**

 **In my dream it was very dark, and what dim light there was seemed to be radiating from Edward's skin.**

"How could you know that?" Rosalie interrupted her husband, "You didn't even know what we were yet." She had come to trust Bella, and even liked her. But this brought back a bit of the hesitancy she had once held about the girl that had come to be a part of her family.

"This is what I've been talking about," Bella explained patiently, "At the time I thought nothing of it at all. I didn't want to think about it. But knowing what I do now, it makes sense." The image the dream conjured up wasn't as brilliant as what she had seen in the meadow that day, but the similarities were enough to draw attention.

"Um…it does?" Jacob asked, a bit lost. Charlie looked just as confused. The wolves were chuckling at the look on the 'baby alpha's' face. It was easy to forget he had only known about all of this for an hour or so.

"Remember all those legends and Hollywood movies about vampires burning in sunlight?" Bella asked him. He nodded. "Well they're obviously false, but they had to come from somewhere, right?" Again he nodded, not sure where she was going with this. "Vampires' skin shines in the sunlight, like diamonds, sparkling and throwing the light back. If a human were to see a vampire running at blinding speeds in the sunlight, it might look as if they had caught on fire and then disappeared."

"So, you had no way of knowing that he 'sparkled'?" Paul asked, laughing at the look on Edward's face at the use of the word, "But the dream told you he would? And knowing your dreams hold bits of truths, you didn't suddenly jump on the 'he's-not-human' thought train?"

Bella was laughing heartily at this as she formed a reply. "Not all of the dreams are completely literal, so I didn't actually know that it meant he was a walking disco ball," she said, earning dirty looks from all of the Cullen men, and another round of laughter from the wolves, "It could just as easily have meant that he was my light in the darkness, a fact which coincidentally is also quite true," she added with a soft smile, "Besides, I was already pretty thoroughly convinced he wasn't precisely normal. Man-handling full-size vans tends to lead me to that conclusion."

"Ok, can we hear the rest of the dream please?" Emmett cut in again, really getting antsy. It was adorable how excited he was by all of this.

 **I couldn't see his face, just his back as he walked away from me, leaving me in the blackness. No matter how fast I ran, I couldn't catch up to him; no matter how loud I called, he never turned.**

Bella tried not to notice the pointed looks Emmett, Jasper, and Rosalie were giving Edward. Looking back on this dream now, with her eyes open, it could simply be a heads up about him keeping his distance during the weeks following the accident. But it could also be a warning about him leaving her behind, something she had always feared, and a dream she had had often enough to truly justify her fears.

The image of her love turning his back on her in the darkening forest and fleeing through the trees, lost to her forever…it was her absolute worst nightmare. One she desperately wanted to avoid ever coming to fruition. Could that be the mistake SM was trying to keep Edward from making? Was he really considering leaving her? The thought had her trembling.

Jasper listened to the dream with growing concern. It was sounding more and more like what his brother had been planning before the arrival of these books, and Bella's fear and sadness at hearing the words read aloud, was enough to want to seriously harm Edward for ever even considering hurting her in that way.

If reading a very brief dream about the possibility of him leaving was causing this sort of emotional response from her, how would she be able to handle hearing what he had actually planned to say and do before SM had intervened? Edward would need to tell her everything before they got that far in the books. She would need warning before hearing about that.

 **Troubled, I woke in the middle of the night and couldn't sleep again for what seemed like a very long time. After that, he was in my dreams nearly every night, but always on the periphery, never within reach.**

"Which really wasn't a surprise given how distant you were," Bella muttered dryly, "I felt like I had lost you before I ever really had you," she continued somberly.

"I'm sorry, love," he responded honestly, "I didn't mean to hurt you. I just…"

"I know Edward. It's ok. I was a threat to the secrecy that protects you and your family," she assured him quickly, "You were only doing what you thought was best for them, like you always do."


	14. Chapter 14 Invitations Part 2

**Chapter 14 – Invitations Part 2**

Hearing Bella's dream from those early days in Forks had everyone deeply contemplative as Emmett continued to read the chapter.

 **The month that followed the accident was uneasy, tense, and, at first, embarrassing.**

 **To my dismay, I found myself the center of attention for the rest of that week. Tyler Crowley was impossible, following me around, obsessed with making amends to me somehow. I tried to convince him what I wanted more than anything else was for him to forget all about it - especially since nothing had actually happened to me - but he remained insistent. He followed me between classes and sat at our now-crowded lunch table. Mike and Eric were even less friendly toward him than they were to each other, which made me worry that I'd gained another unwelcome fan.**

"Oh, you had," Jasper commented, laughing along with the rest of the Cullen children.

"Oh that's great, laugh it up guys," Bella grumbled, "I'm glad you enjoy my discomfort."

"Come on Belly," Emmett came back, still laughing, "You know it's funny. You purposefully try not to attract attention, and every guy in school has the hots for you. Any of those girls would have killed to be in your place, and you shudder at the thought of another admirer. It's hilarious."

"That's hardly my fault," Bella complained, knowing full well that it really wasn't. After all, Ian had explained it to her. How she would begin to come into her own in her late teens, and human men would be drawn to her without understanding why. She had hated the attention, not just because she didn't enjoy the spotlight in general, but because it was further proof that she could never be a normal human girl…

 **No one seemed concerned about Edward, though I explained over and over that he was the hero - how he had pulled me out of the way and had nearly been crushed, too. I tried to be convincing. Jessica, Mike, Eric, and everyone else always commented that they hadn't even seen him there till the van was pulled away.**

 **I wondered to myself why no one else had seen him standing so far away, before he was suddenly, impossibly saving my life. With chagrin, I realized the probable cause - no one else was as aware of Edward as I always was. No one else watched him the way I did. How pitiful.**

Edward pulled her close once again, placing light kisses atop her mess of mahogany locks, "I was just as aware of you, love. Still am." She ducked her head at this, unsuccessfully trying to hide the smile that graced her lips at his words.

 **Edward was never surrounded by crowds of curious bystanders eager for his firsthand account. People avoided him as usual. The Cullens and the Hales sat at the same table as always, not eating, talking only among themselves. None of them, especially Edward, glanced my way anymore.**

 **When he sat next to me in class, as far from me as the table would allow, he seemed totally unaware of my presence. Only now and then, when his fists would suddenly ball up - skin stretched even whiter over the bones - did I wonder if he wasn't quite as oblivious as he appeared.**

"He wasn't," Alice chimed in, giving her brother a death glare, "I told him everything would work out in the end, that you two would be perfect together. But did he listen to me? No, he just had to keep you at arm's length and be an ass for as long as possible before finally giving up and getting together with you, exactly as I said he would." She seemed truly bothered by the fact that Edward had ignored her council, and given her track record, it really was foolish of him.

The Cullens were all laughing as Bella commented, "You'll never catch me betting against Alice."

This earned even more laughter from the Cullens, and an understanding chuckle from Charlie. He had been informed of the girl's psychic visions. The tribesmen however were again confused. Today was going to be just full of surprises for them…

 **He wished he hadn't pulled me from the path of Tyler's van - there was no other conclusion I could come to.**

"WHAT?!" practically everyone present exclaimed at the same moment.

Edward pulled away and looked directly into Bella's eyes, trying to gage the truth of her feelings on the matter as he asked what they were all thinking, "You didn't really believe that did you?"

"I had no reason not to at the time," she answered, unphased by the looks she was receiving from everyone. She was fully aware that they were all questioning her sanity, but honestly, what was she supposed to think given what she'd known at the time?

Edward looked like he was about to argue the point, and Bella really wanted to get back to the book. And truthfully, this wasn't a conversation that she wanted to have with an audience. So she spoke before he could, "I know better now, ok? Can we just keep reading?"

No one looked satisfied with her explanation. And no one liked the idea of her thinking anyone would prefer she had died that day in the school lot. But after a round of silent nods, Emmett continued.

 **I wanted very much to talk to him, and the day after the accident I tried. The last time I'd seen him, outside the ER, we'd both been so furious. I still was angry that he wouldn't trust me with the truth, even though I was keeping my part of the bargain flawlessly. But he had in fact saved my life, no matter how he'd done it. And, overnight, the heat of my anger faded into awed gratitude.**

 **He was already seated when I got to Biology, looking straight ahead. I sat down, expecting him to turn toward me. He showed no sign that he realized I was there.**

 **"Hello, Edward," I said pleasantly, to show him I was going to behave myself.**

 **He turned his head a fraction toward me without meeting my gaze, nodded once, and then looked the other way.**

 **And that was the last contact I'd had with him, though he was there, a foot away from me, every day. I watched him sometimes, unable to stop myself- from a distance, though, in the cafeteria or parking lot. I watched as his golden eyes grew perceptibly darker day by day. But in class I gave no more notice that he existed than he showed toward me.**

 **I was miserable. And the dreams continued.**

"Come on," Jared complained, "We finally get a taste for your cool dreams, and then SM starts editing? That's hardly fair."

"Leave the girl alone," Kim came to her defense, smacking her boyfriend in the back of the head, "Dreams are meant to be private. I'm sure if there's anything really important SM will include it."

"Thank Kim," Bella whispered, though she knew most everyone in the room would hear her just fine.

 **Despite my outright lies, the tenor of my e-mails alerted Renée to my depression, and she called a few times, worried. I tried to convince her it was just the weather that had me down.**

 **Mike, at least, was pleased by the obvious coolness between me and my lab partner. I could see he'd been worried that Edward's daring rescue might have impressed me, and he was relieved that it seemed to have the opposite effect. He grew more confident, sitting on the edge of my table to talk before Biology class started, ignoring Edward as completely as he ignored us.**

 **The snow washed away for good after that one dangerously icy day. Mike was disappointed he'd never gotten to stage his snowball fight, but pleased that the beach trip would soon be possible. The rain continued heavily, though, and the weeks passed.**

 **Jessica made me aware of another event looming on the horizon - she called the first Tuesday of March to ask my permission to invite Mike to the girls' choice spring dance in two weeks.**

"She called you to ask for permission?" Sam asked, seeming confused.

"Of course," Bella replied easily.

"But I thought you weren't dating the Newton kid?" Jacob continued, equally perplexed by the situation.

This earned light laughter from most of the women there. Hadn't these guys ever heard of The Girl Code?

Sue felt the need to enlighten them, "It wouldn't matter if she was dating him or not. He had obviously shown interest in her, which technically meant she had dibs if she wanted it. And they're friends. It's practically rule #1 of the girl code; never ever get between a friend and a guy she's interested in. If she hadn't asked first and it turned out Bella had been planning to ask him herself, or had even been considering it, it might have been disastrous for their friendship."

Even Old Quil looked shocked at this. It was absolutely hilarious that these guys, who were in on the secrets of the supernatural world, were completely clueless when it came to the inner workings of female society.

"And she just knew that she had to do this?" Paul asked this time, still finding it totally odd.

"There's an etiquette to these things," Bella explained simply, still laughing, "It's like an unspoken set of rules that all women follow no matter what."

Emmett just shook his head, and returned to the story, trying not to think about all the other 'rules' his wife and sisters lived by that he didn't know about.

 **"Are you sure you don't mind... you weren't planning to ask him?" she persisted when I told her I didn't mind in the least.**

 **"No, Jess, I'm not going," I assured her. Dancing was glaringly outside my range of abilities.**

 **"It will be really fun." Her attempt to convince me was halfhearted. I suspected that Jessica enjoyed my inexplicable popularity more than my actual company.**

"That sounds like Jessica," Alice admitted. She had never really understood why Bella was friends with the Stanley girl. They were polar opposites in nearly every way.

"She has been trying to get Mike's attention for years," Rosalie explained, "I suspect she saw your immediate popularity upon arrival as an easy was to make herself more noticeable to him."

"The fact that he liked you, and you had no intention of ever dating him, and even helped to push him towards her certainly added to the appeal," Jasper continued.

"Sounds about right," Bella chuckled, not bothered in the slightest by the revelation. That was just how Jessica was.

 **"You have fun with Mike," I encouraged.**

 **The next day, I was surprised that Jessica wasn't her usual gushing self in Trig and Spanish. She was silent as she walked by my side between classes, and I was afraid to ask her why. If Mike had turned her down, I was the last person she would want to tell.**

 **My fears were strengthened during lunch when Jessica sat as far from Mike as possible, chatting animatedly with Eric. Mike was unusually quiet.**

 **Mike was still quiet as he walked me to class, the uncomfortable look on his face a bad sign. But he didn't broach the subject until I was in my seat and he was perched on my desk. As always, I was electrically aware of Edward sitting close enough to touch, as distant as if he were merely an invention of my imagination.**

 **"So," Mike said, looking at the floor, "Jessica asked me to the spring dance."**

 **"That's great." I made my voice bright and enthusiastic. "You'll have a lot of fun with Jessica."**

 **"Well..." He floundered as he examined my smile, clearly not happy with my response. "I told her I had to think about it."**

"Idiot," Kim, Bella, and Emily all muttered in unison.

 **"Why would you do that?" I let disapproval color my tone, though I was relieved he hadn't given her an absolute no.**

 **His face was bright red as he looked down again. Pity shook my resolve.**

 **"I was wondering if... well, if you might be planning to ask me."**

 **I paused for a moment, hating the wave of guilt that swept through me. But I saw, from the corner of my eye, Edward's head tilt reflexively in my direction.**

 **"Mike, I think you should tell her yes," I said.**

"Well you let him down soft," Sue commented.

"He's really a good guy," Bella explained, "He is just a bit dense when it comes to women. He and Jessica are perfect for each other, but he was a bit fixated."

"Yeah," Edward grumbled, "On you…"


	15. Chapter 15 Bella's Boy Problems

**Chapter 15 – Why Can't the Boys Leave Her Alone?**

"Don't be jealous Edward," Bella uttered, "I'm the one that actually had to deal with them all…"

"All?" Charlie asked, looked nervous. No father wanted to hear about his daughter's many suitors, even after the fact.

"Oh Charlie, you are in for a surprise," Emmett teased, "Your girl here was the number one most desirable date for the Spring Dance this past year."

"And not a one of them seemed to understand the concept of a 'Girl's Choice' event…" Bella continued muttering. She really hated this part. And their conversation was treading into dangerous waters. She really didn't want to explain about Ian yet…

 **"Did you already ask someone?" Did Edward notice how Mike's eyes flickered in his direction?**

 **"No," I assured him. "I'm not going to the dance at all."**

 **"Why not?" Mike demanded.**

 **I didn't want to get into the safety hazards that dancing presented, so I quickly made new plans.**

 **"I'm going to Seattle that Saturday," I explained. I needed to get out of town anyway - it was suddenly the perfect time to go.**

 **"Can't you go some other weekend?"**

 **"Sorry, no," I said. "So you shouldn't make Jess wait any longer - it's rude."**

 **"Yeah, you're right," he mumbled, and turned, dejected, to walk back to his seat. I closed my eyes and pressed my fingers to my temples, trying to push the guilt and sympathy out of my head.**

"You had nothing to feel guilty for," Jasper assured her, somewhat confused at her reaction.

"He's right," Esme agreed, "That boy was rather presumptuous, and put you in an uncomfortable position. Turning down a man whose feeling you do not share is not a crime, especially given your friend was very clearly interested in him. What else could you have done?"

Bella wanted to just agree with the maternal vampire. She wanted to tell her that of course she had been sensible and in no way unkind. But then she would have to explain that her guilt had never been over turning him down, or even making Jessica jealous over the whole situation. She had felt guilty because it was her fault that he was so obsessed in the first place. She could hardly blame him for acting on the instinct all the human males seemed to be following since her arrival.

Instead she simply nodded, noncommittally, and stayed silent as Emmett resumed reading.

Her silence and continued frustration and guilt, however, caught Jasper's attention, and he passed along his confusion to Edward.

 **Mr. Banner began talking. I sighed and opened my eyes.**

 **And Edward was staring at me curiously, that same, familiar edge of frustration even more distinct now in his black eyes.**

 **I stared back, surprised, expecting him to look quickly away. But instead he continued to gaze with probing intensity into my eyes. There was no question of me looking away. My hands started to shake.**

 **"Mr. Cullen?" the teacher called, seeking the answer to a question that I hadn't heard.**

 **"The Krebs Cycle," Edward answered, seeming reluctant as he turned to look at Mr. Banner.**

 **I looked down at my book as soon as his eyes released me, trying to find my place. Cowardly as ever, I shifted my hair over my right shoulder to hide my face. I couldn't believe the rush of emotion pulsing through me - just because he'd happened to look at me for the first time in a half-dozen weeks. I couldn't allow him to have this level of influence over me. It was pathetic. More than pathetic, it was unhealthy.**

Edward frowned at this assessment, looking down at Bella curiously, his questions obvious in his gaze.

"Don't worry," Bella told him, "I have since ceased caring what any of it means. I love you, you love me, and that is enough to justify the ridiculous effects we have on each other."

"But why did it bother you so much then?" Edward pressed. He didn't want to think that she had ever rejected what they had together, even for a moment, even if it was back when he was being a complete ass.

"Because I didn't think you would ever feel the same…" she explained, her words barely audible.

 **I tried very hard not to be aware of him for the rest of the hour, and, since that was impossible, at least not to let him know that I was aware of him. When the bell rang at last, I turned my back to him to gather my things, expecting him to leave immediately as usual.**

 **"Bella?" His voice shouldn't have been so familiar to me, as if I'd known the sound of it all my life rather than for just a few short weeks.**

 **I turned slowly, unwillingly. I didn't want to feel what I knew I would feel when I looked at his too-perfect face. My expression was wary when I finally turned to him; his expression was unreadable. He didn't say anything.**

 **"What? Are you speaking to me again?" I finally asked, an unintentional note of petulance in my voice.**

 **His lips twitched, fighting a smile. "No, not really," he admitted.**

 **I closed my eyes and inhaled slowly through my nose, aware that I was gritting my teeth. He waited.**

 **"Then what do you want, Edward?" I asked, keeping my eyes closed; it was easier to talk to him coherently that way.**

"I don't think I understand what you mean by that," Harry admitted, and from the small nods all of the elders were giving her, it was clear they shared in his confusion.

"I call it his 'dazzling'," Bella began her explanation, laughing lightly as she spoke, "I didn't really understand it at the time, but whenever he looked me directly in the eyes, it was like I couldn't really focus quite right, and I told him whatever he wanted to know, without thinking about it. It was incredibly frustrating," she continued, actually glaring at her boyfriend, though the fire didn't reach her eyes, "He, of course, was completely oblivious to the effect he had on me, and most everyone for that matter."

"I still don't understand," Billy continued, "Is that some kind of extra ability you have?" His question was directed at Edward, but Bella responded before he could.

"Oh no," she said, "I did some digging after I finally put the pieces together about him, and found that his 'dazzling' is often referred to in vampire legends are 'compulsion'. It's completely normal for any vampire with a mental ability to be able to use compulsion to some extent, but it's not really an extra ability, as quite a lot of vampires can do it."

The Cullens looked surprised at this revelation. Bella had never mentioned this sort of personal research.

"Compulsion?" Carlisle asked, truly confused. How had she found answers in the legends that he had never uncovered in all his centuries of searching? And why had he never noticed his son had such a gift?

"Surely you've noticed such an influence in others with mental gifts?" Bella seemed genuinely surprised that they hadn't known this.

"Aro?" Esme asked Carlisle.

"I suppose he could," Carlisle agreed, "I've never considered that before. Aro can read every thought that a person has ever had, with a single touch. It is a powerful mental gift. And he is the ruler of a very large faction of vampires in Italy, called the Volturi," he explained, seeing that the Quileutes had no idea who they were referring to.

"Does he seem to maintain his power without any difficulty, getting his way often?" Bella pressed, sensing that this Aro she had heard vaguely of before was somehow important.

"Yes," Carlisle answered easily, "He is widely considered to be the most powerful vampire alive today. His followers practically worship him. But that isn't all down to his charm, or even this 'compulsion'. His guard is made up of incredibly powerful gifted vampires. No one crosses them because to do so would be to court death."

Bella shivered at the thought, remembering the conversation she had had with Edward only a few days ago, about his plans to visit the Volturi if she had died. It was painful to think about, and she prayed that was another foolish idea these books, and the family's response to them might knock out of her love's head for good.

"Very interesting," Old Quil pondered. The fact that Bella even recognized what was happening, and the fact that it didn't seem to be effective on her anymore, made him wonder if she might have some ability to block this compulsion. And if she did, was it related to her dream gift in some way?

 **"I'm sorry." He sounded sincere. "I'm being very rude, I know. But it's better this way, really."**

 **I opened my eyes. His face was very serious.**

 **"I don't know what you mean," I said, my voice guarded.**

 **"It's better if we're not friends," he explained. "Trust me."**

 **My eyes narrowed. I'd heard that before.**

 **"It's too bad you didn't figure that out earlier," I hissed through my teeth. "You could have saved yourself all this regret."**

 **"Regret?" The word, and my tone, obviously caught him off guard. "Regret for what?"**

 **"For not just letting that stupid van squish me."**

 **He was astonished. He stared at me in disbelief.**

"I had thoroughly convinced myself that that was said in anger, and that you had never actually thought that," Edward said quietly, "Hearing the confirmation that this was actually how you thought, it saddens me greatly."

"Oh Edward," she sighed, leaning into him, "I was being foolish and unfair. You did nothing wrong. It was an impossible situation, and you did the best you could at the time." And it was never him that had made her feel that way. It was the echo of another time, another man, that had left her feeling so.

"You are far too forgiving, love," was his only reply. He simply couldn't wrap his head around the fact that she had honestly believed he would have preferred her dead. The thought was physically painful to him now, and he never could have wished it true, even that first day when some part of him hated her for tempting him so. He never wished her harm.

 **When he finally spoke, he almost sounded mad. "You think I regret saving your life?"**

 **"I know you do," I snapped.**

 **"You don't know anything." He was definitely mad.**

"I really didn't," Bella whispered, "It still amazes me I never drove you away with how I acted then."

"You could never drive me away," he contradicted, "And honestly you had every right to be angry with me. I was being incredibly rude."

"I'll say," Alice agreed, still irritated that he had behaved in such a manner when she had told him all along that they were meant for each other.

Jacob watched this little encounter with growing speculation. It seemed as though Bella had been reacting to more than just Edward's words and actions at the time. In fact, she always seemed to be saying more than the words she actually shared. It was uncanny, how there still seemed to be so much they didn't know about her. Who was it that made Bella feel her life was not worth saving? Because despite being a jerk, Edward had never actually given her reason to suspect that.

 **I turned my head sharply away from him, clenching my jaw against all the wild accusations I wanted to hurl at him. I gathered my books together, then stood and walked to the door. I meant to sweep dramatically out of the room, but of course I caught the toe of my boot on the door jamb and dropped my books. I stood there for a moment, thinking about leaving them. Then I sighed and bent to pick them up. He was there; he'd already stacked them into a pile. He handed them to me, his face hard.**

 **"Thank you," I said icily.**

 **His eyes narrowed.**

 **"You're welcome," he retorted.**

"Even when you two fight, you're ridiculously polite," Paul complained, laughing, and quickly recovering the good mood throughout the room.

 **I straightened up swiftly, turned away from him again, and stalked off to Gym without looking back.**

 **Gym was brutal. We'd moved on to basketball. My team never passed me the ball, so that was good, but I fell down a lot. Sometimes I took people with me. Today I was worse than usual because my head was so filled with Edward. I tried to concentrate on my feet, but he kept creeping back into my thoughts just when I really needed my balance.**

 **It was a relief, as always, to leave. I almost ran to the truck; there were just so many people I wanted to avoid. The truck had suffered only minimal damage in the accident. I'd had to replace the taillights, and if I'd had a real paint job, I would have touched that up. Tyler's parents had to sell their van for parts.**

 **I almost had a stroke when I rounded the corner and saw a tall, dark figure leaning against the side of my truck. Then I realized it was just Eric. I started walking again.**

"Why did that scare you?" Emmett asked, setting the book down in his lap and looking at his sister curiously, "Eric and Edward look nothing alike at all."

"I would have been irritated if Edward had popped up out of nowhere, again," Bella explained, "Not scared."

"But then who did you think it was?" Charlie asked. He couldn't remember her ever mentioning any tall, dark, and handsome types, here or in Phoenix. But then again, she had never mentioned werecats and vampires either, so anything was possible…

Bella looked distinctly uncomfortable with the turn this had taken. She didn't think they would have even noticed this, so she hadn't prepared an explanation for it. And she really didn't want to explain her past with Ian.

"Bells?" Jacob reminded her she wasn't alone, and they were all waiting for her to say something.

SM's words to her came back then. She didn't need to hide anything with these people. They were family. So she took two deep breaths, and then said very quietly, "Ian."


	16. Chapter 16 Who the hell is Ian!

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **A/N: I received quite a few PMs and reviews from readers concerned that Ian was going to be a past lover of Bella's. I just want to put that fear to rest right now, before you begin. Stephanie Meyer was extremely clear in her writings of the Twilight series that Bella was a) a VIRGIN and b) had never been romantically involved in any way with anyone, ever, before meeting Edward in Forks. I enjoy adding to and tweaking her characters (especially with regards to origin stories that are left rather open ended a lot of the time), but I will always make a conscious effort not to directly contradict the original source material. Ian's story is interesting, and I feel it explains a lot about why Bella reacted so strongly to several key plot points on Edward's part in both Twilight and New Moon (yes, the similarities in the speeches is intentional... and will definitely come back to be important at some point in the distant future of this series...), but it is not, repeat, NOT a story about Bella's ex. I hope you all enjoy, and thank you for all of the reviews these last few days.**

 **Chapter 16 – Who the hell is Ian?!**

There was a moment of absolute silence as everyone absorbed her answer.

Ever since SM's letter about the dreams, they had all been wondering when they would hear about the mystery men, Lucas and Ian. It had seemed as though she had purposefully glossed over them then, and with everything her story about the pride revealed, they had been distracted enough not to ask her about it right away. Now, they all needed to know.

"Bella?" Sam began, looking around at the others gathered there, "Who is Ian?"

She blew out a low breath, trying to decide the best way to explain this. She hadn't wanted to talk about it at all. Compared to everything that had happened with Sasha and her pride, it really wasn't all that bad, but it still hurt to talk about. And there was no way she could tell this story without revealing more about her own 'gifts'.

"Ian was a dear friend once, like an older brother," she began, actually smiling a bit at the memory her statement brought on.

They all wanted to interrupt, to ask their hundred questions, but they held their collective tongues, allowing her to gather her thoughts before continuing.

"We met when I was 9, before Sasha and her family came to Phoenix, before I knew anything about the supernatural at all, back when my life was simpler," she explained, "Ian was a few years ahead of me in school, 12 years old at the time, when he and his brother moved to Phoenix. By all accounts, we never should have met, being several grades apart in a school that big, but we were both the odd ones out. The book worms. The loners. So, naturally, we were drawn together eventually.

I was being bullied pretty bad by the other students at the time, and one day, I was hiding in the library during lunch, trying to avoid the other kids, when Ian came in and asked to sit with me.

I had seen him in the library a few times in the weeks after his arrival, and I knew the other students were just as cruel to him as they often were to me. So I gave him a chance. He was nice, and from that day forward, he took me under his wing, protected me from the other kids, made me feel safe."

She paused, thinking deeply, lost in another memory, while the others looked at her confused. She was making Ian seem like her childhood hero. But if that was the case, why would she have been afraid to see him again?

"We would just talk for hours," she continued after a moment, "Mostly about books. He actually introduced me to the classics. He shared his vast love of music and history. He was my best friend."

The use of the past tense on her part was not missed by any of them, but Paul was the one to speak up. "What happened? When did things between you change?" he asked gently.

"It was Sasha's first day at school. I was 11, and Ian was 14, which meant he was in Sonya's grade. Like I said before, Sasha and I quickly became close friends, and I thought that he would like her sisters, so I introduced them. I was so excited, because I thought I was actually going to have a real friend group for the first time ever."

"Ian didn't like the cats?" Jared asked.

"It went beyond dislike," Bella spat, angry, "He hated them from the moment they met. And the feeling was at least somewhat mutual. Sasha didn't seem bothered in the slightest, but Sonya and Sita both despised him. I had no idea what was going on, but I didn't want to lose Ian as a friend, so I told him I would stay away from Sasha's older sisters."

"That wasn't enough though, was it?" Rosalie asked, sensing where this was going.

"No," Bella agreed, "For so long, it had just been Ian and I against the world. You see, Ian's parents died when he was very young, and his older brother, Jon, had raised him ever since. He understood what it was like, to have to grow up too young. He was the only 14-year-old I knew who didn't think I was crazy when I said I had to balance the checkbook or make sure I paid the bills. He and his brother had to do the same. They got it; they got me.

And so, after two years of it being just us, I made a new friend, and he was furious. I thought that it was just that he missed spending all our time together or something, something mundane that he would get over in a couple days and then things would go back to normal."

"But they didn't?" Paul pressed, once again filled with a surge of sympathy for this girl who had lived such a difficult childhood.

"No. I didn't understand why he hated them so much, but I probably should have," she said quietly, "He warned me the week before Sasha's birthday that I needed to stay away from them. He said that change was coming and I needed to 'cut my losses, while I still could'. It was one of the worst fights we had ever had."

"He knew, didn't he?" Billy asked, starting to work it out.

"Yeah, he knew about the pride," she told him, "He knew everything."

"What happened Bells?" Charlie asked. It pained him to hear about all that had happened to his daughter in her time with his ex-wife, but he really needed to know, to understand all that she had been through.

"The night that the pride found out about the dreams," her voice shook as she continued, "The night they tried to… tried to kill me, Ian showed up at their house, and fought them off. He saved my life. He's the reason I got away that night."

This was a question they had all wanted to ask since she had first told them the story of the pride. How had she gotten away from five werecats alive? It made sense that she would have had help, but one teenage boy shouldn't have been able to take them on alone either. There had to be something else going on here.

"What was he?" Edward asked gently, not wanting to upset her, but also truly curious. No human boy would have been able to fight them off.

"A lycan," she answered slowly, gaging their reactions. There was no anger or fear, only confusion, so she continued, "One of the Moon's Children." This got a reaction.

Jasper and, to her immense surprise and horror, Carlisle, were both hissing lowly in obvious hatred and anger.

Esme looked at her husband in shock, "Carlisle! What is going on?"

"It's ok," Bella assured her, turning to Carlisle, "Jon mentioned that most other supes, his short hand for the many supernatural species that hide in our world, were not fond of them. Neither of them ever mentioned vampires obviously, but I am not altogether surprised that there is no love lost between your people and theirs. That seemed to be the trend with them."

Carlisle and Jasper both got ahold of themselves after a moment and apologized for their outbursts.

"Does someone want to explain to the rest of us what a lycan is?" Harry asked, and the round of nods around the room revealed many of the Cullens were also in the dark on this one.

"I have never heard them referred to by that name," Jasper begins, "But the moon children were once well known among our kind, a sort of mortal enemy, if you will."

"They are somewhat similar to your pack in that they are mostly human and transform into an animal similar to a large wolf," Carlisle continues, "But they are not born that way. They are changed through venom much like us. And their transformation is even more long and painful than our own; it often drives them to the point of madness."

"Because of this, most supes naturally distrust them, and will often hunt their packs down when they cross into claimed territory, even if they've done nothing wrong," Bella adds, a note of pity in her voice.

"Carlisle, dear, why did you react so strongly to the mere mention of them?" Esme asked. He was not normally violent towards anyone or anything; there had to be a story there.

"I'm truly sorry for that," he apologized yet again, "Early in my immortal life, I spent a considerable amount of time with the coven from Italy I mentioned earlier, the Volturi, and while I was there, the castle was attacked by a very large pack of lycans. I watched many of my dear friends die by their hands." He trails off, deep in a memory, his eyes filled to the brim with tears that would never fall.

"I had a similar experience in my early days," Jasper explained, "There was a lone moon child that passed through our territory. It was starving, and completely mad. My friend, Joanna, tried to help it, but it attacked her. I was too late to save her…"

Neither man had ever told these stories, even with the family, and that alone was proof of just how painful the memories were for them. The fact that any single event in Jasper's long, violent history could elicit such a pained response was quite surprising.

But the true horror was in the fact that these creatures were dangerous and unpredictable enough to kill experienced vampire fighters, and Bella had encountered and befriended one of them as a human. Edward's eyes grew rather wide with fear as he heard this recurrent theme in everyone's minds, and held Bella tighter to him, as if to remind himself that she was here and safe.

"So," Charlie broke the tense silence, his voice wary, "Your best friend growing up was a lycan? Who was angry with you for choosing to spend time with a pride of werecats? And who saved your life when said werecats attacked you? Have I got that all right so far?" He sounded incredulous. What was it about his daughter that drew danger to her like a magnet?

"Yeah," she sighed, "That about sums it up."

"You never answered the question though," Paul pushed, "Ian was your hero. Your best friend. He saved your life, and must have exposed himself to do it, taking a tremendous risk. So why would you react to seeing someone you thought to be him, with fear?"

She looked down, embarrassed by all of this. She hated being in the spotlight, talking about herself. And she had never actually told these stories to anyone. So, she was incredibly unsure, and self-conscious.

When her silence dragged on, Jacob decided to voice a theory that was quickly forming in his mind, "None of us understood why you would think Edward regretted saving your life after the incident with Tyler's van. He was a jerk, but he never did anything to make you think that. And your assumption on the point was obviously way off."

"Where are you going with this Jake?" Billy whispered to his son, confused.

"Bells, the only thing I can think of that would explain your reaction to Edward's behavior, would be if you were comparing it to someone else's, someone from your past who saved your life, and then expressed regret at doing so, and behaved in a similar fashion to how Edward did. So you assumed he felt the same way. Was Ian the one who caused that? Was he the one to make you feel that way?"

Jacob's words struck a chord with Bella, and by the time he had finished, she had silent tears streaking down her flushed cheeks.

"After he got me out of their house," she began again, her words rushed, her voice rough from tears, "he brought me home to his brother, and they both took care of me.

They explained about lycans, and about what really happened to their parents. Jon watched their mom and dad get butchered by a massive pride of werecats; that was why he and Ian hated Sasha's family right away.

They helped me to research my supposed dream gift, and they answered all the millions of questions I had about magic. I'm not sure that I actually believed half of it, but they indulged me anyway, helping me to find answers and make sense of things.

They bandaged me up, and helped me deal with Renee. They thought of everything, and they were absolutely wonderful.

And then…they weren't.

It was maybe two weeks after Sasha had come and delivered the news of the pride's deaths, and I was a mess. Even after what they tried to do to me, I loved them like family, and their deaths, and Sasha's disappearance from my life, hit me hard. I needed to be able to lean on Ian and Jon to get through it, but they couldn't understand my grief.

They hated the cats, and after what happened that night, they believed I should feel the same. We fought about it all the time, and then one day, I came to school and they were both gone."

She stopped speaking then, even though they could all tell there was more to it than that. So, everyone waited, silent, letting her collect herself a bit and gather her thoughts again. This really was hard for her to talk about, and Jasper was having a very hard time calming her down.

"For weeks, they disappeared. Ian didn't come to school. I never saw either of them downtown. My friends, my brothers, were just gone. And then, one day, Ian walked into the library at school. I ran to him, so glad to see him, and he acted like I didn't exist, like we had never met.

Neither of them spoke to me for a long time, until finally I confronted Ian. I wanted to know what the hell was going on," she continued to explain, her face quickly turning to one of irritation and anger.

Edward couldn't speak. He realized now that the way he had behaved back then was far too similar to how Ian had treated her. It was no wonder it affected her so much, given her history. He was ashamed of himself, and desperately wished he could somehow take it all back.

"What did he say when you confronted him?" Jared asked, unsure if he really wanted to hear the answer.

"He told me that he and Jon were tired of pretending to be something they weren't. They were lycans, predators, and they had spent far too much time acting as the big brothers I had molded them into. I was nothing but a werecat sympathizer, and I deserved whatever fate I got for that fatal mistake. He told me that he wished he had never pulled me out of the house that night. He and Jon had offered me the world, and instead of forgetting my friends and joining them in their prejudice, I had grieved for their enemies, which made me no better than their enemies.

I was bawling at this point, hopelessly destroyed emotionally, unable to form any kind of a reply. I sank down to my knees, dropped my head in my hands and wept while he continued to rail into me for my supposed 'betrayals'. Finally, he said that the world would be better off if the pride had killed me, and maybe he would get lucky and someone would finish the job for them. And then he walked away, and I never saw either of them again."

 **A/N: Would anyone be interested in reading a Twilight Reading Twilight Prequel about Bella's time in Phoenix with a more detailed look at her interactions with Ian, Sasha and the pride, and Lucas (who I promise I will explain...eventually)? It is something I have been toying with writing for a while, and based on the responses I have gotten to this story, there might be an audience for it. Let me know what you think, and as always, R &R. :)**


	17. Ch 17 How Could We Have Never Known?

**Copyright Disclaimer:** Stephanie Meyer is the sole owner of all Twilight Universe intellectual property, including but not limited to Twilight characters, Twilight plotlines, and all included Twilight text. This story is a fanfiction commentary on her work and no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing.

 **Chapter 17 – How Could We Have Never Known?**

Bella's story was devastating. Jacob had been right, but he felt no validation, only pain at his friend's past. His father, and hers both cried openly, horrified at her recounting of this memory. Wolves, vampires, and humans alike, they all wept for her, their faces contorted in pain, sorrow, and anger at the boy who could hurt her that way. No one deserved that, Bella least of all.

Edward was rocking his angel back and forth, trying to soothe her, while his own self-loathing jumped to an all-time high. He had treated her so poorly, and everything he had done reminded her of this monster. Worse than that, Ian's final words to her ran an uncanny parallel to the horrid lies he had prepared for the day he would have left her behind. He was terrified now to think of the impact such a departure might have had on her if he had gone through with it. It would have destroyed her…

"He was so wrong Bella," Esme comforted her, "You are incredible, and so, so strong. You loved the pride, despite what they were, and accepted them completely, in a way those _animals_ ," she spat the word, in an uncharacteristic show of anger and disgust with Ian and his brother, "never could. You have shown that same level of love and open-minded acceptance with my family, and with the wolves. He couldn't take that from you, and for that I am so proud of you."

"Thanks Mom," Bella answered her, barely above a whisper, "Um, I'm sorry… Can I have a minute?" She stood from Edward's lap, and without waiting for a response from anyone, though no one could possibly begrudge her a reprieve, she quickly ran up the stairs, headed for the bathroom.

Completely overcome by the emotional climate in the house, Jasper quickly followed Bella's lead, dashing out the front door and into the trees to escape the pain and sorrow that threatened to drown him, saying simply, "I'm sorry, I can't…"

No one spoke for a long moment, all of them lost in their own thoughts, trying to piece together everything Bella had just shared with them. This whole morning felt like one gut-punch after another, and none of them knew how to deal with it.

Again, it was Esme who broke the silence, "I think we need a break," she said simply, knowing full well she was not the only one too emotional to keep reading right away, "It's almost two; Why don't I make some lunch for everyone?"

The wolves quickly agreed, their stomachs growling loudly at the mention of food, and Esme left for the kitchen, followed closely by Emily, Kim, and Sue. Surprisingly, Sam, Jared, and Harry posed no complaint this time to their loved ones leaving with the vampire mother.

Harry, Billy, Old Quil and Charlie all headed into the front room, needing some space from everyone to think about everything that had happened, and were surprised when Carlisle soon joined them, needing the support of the other fathers in light of what he had just learned about the woman he whole-heartedly considered to be his daughter.

Meanwhile, the remaining Cullens fled the house, to look for Jasper, and find a patch of trees to take their turmoil out on, leaving Jacob and the wolves in the living room to wait for the food and talk amongst themselves, with a small amount of privacy.

"I don't understand how I never saw any of this," Jacob said quietly, "Bella and I were practically family growing up. I thought we told each other everything. And I never once saw how much she had to be hurting. She never mentioned any of this, not once."

Sam reached out, placing a firm, yet comforting hand on Jacob's bicep, "She couldn't. We are talking about werecats and lycans. She couldn't talk to anyone about it. It doesn't mean she doesn't love and trust you."

"He's right," Jared continued, "As far as she knew, you were human. Telling you about any of this stuff would have meant putting you in danger. She was protecting you by keeping you in the dark, so you wouldn't get hurt the way she had…"

Paul nodded. He knew they were right, but he also knew it went deeper than that. "She never had anyone to look out for her growing up; Renee was more the child in their relationship than she was, and she only saw Charlie a few weeks out of the year. I know Renee got married again, but it sounds like that was fairly recent, and before that she dated a lot of guys, but none of them with any level of serious permanence. She had no real father figure, no one to protect her and make her feel safe. Then Ian comes along and he and Jon become like surrogate brothers to her; she finally has someone to take care of her. Having them betray her and abandon her…" he trailed off, getting emotional.

The other wolves weren't used to seeing the resident badass this sentimental, and they had certainly never seen him on the verge of tears and too choked up to speak. Only Jared really understood where this was coming from, as he was the only one who knew about Paul's own childhood. It was obvious that he understood completely where Bella was coming from.

"I was like her brother," Jacob realized, "Me, and Rachel, and Rebecca… We were the closest thing she had to siblings growing up and she only got to see us a couple of weeks each summer. She was afraid of losing us like she did Sasha and Ian. She never told us, even the human aspects of what happened, because she was scared of driving us away…"

It was truly heartbreaking, but they all knew he was right.

"We are all going to be there for her now," Sam concluded, making a firm decision then to deal with the Cullens however necessary to ensure Bella was safe and happy. He didn't understand why, but he felt incredibly protective of her, and he knew the rest of the pack was already just as attached. She was quickly going to become a part of their little family, and if that meant playing nice with the animal drinkers then so be it. They weren't going to leave her like the lycans had, "She will never have to feel like that again."

In the front room, Carlisle smiled at Sam's sentiment, having heard every word of their exchange. The new alpha reminded him so much of Levi Uley, and it brought him great joy to find that they all seemed to care about his Bella.

"I think the pack are going to be around here far more often from now on," he said, turning back to the other men in the room.

"What do you mean?" Billy asked, still somewhat hesitant.

"Jacob thinks of Bella as his big sister," he explained, "He loves her, and after hearing all of this, he desperately wants to protect her. The rest of the pack feels the same. Sam just vowed to be there for her from now on, and it seems they are all in agreement."

Charlie looked confused, obviously trying to figure out how Carlisle knew this, so Harry said simply, "Cold ones have heightened senses. He can hear their whole conversation from here," and laughed when his friend looked slightly uncomfortable at this revelation, "I suppose that means, we will have to talk about revising the finer details of the treaty, that is if you are comfortable with the pack coming on your land in the future?"

"Of course," the coven leader readily agreed, "I will discuss it with Jacob and Sam both tonight and work everything out accordingly. So long as they mean us no harm, and are good to Bella, I see no reason not to allow it. Besides, it will likely take us the whole weekend to finish the first book, and since the children really all need to go back to school on Monday, it might take weeks to get through the other three. Everyone will be spending a lot of time here for that anyway. That is of course assuming you all would still prefer we not approach Quileute lands, no matter the new terms of the treaty?"

Billy thought about it for a moment before he answered, "I know it might seem lopsided, us wanting to come here, while still asking you and your… family, to stay off our lands. It's not really a matter of trust. I think today has shown us all that you are not the monsters we have all come to expect when dealing with vampires, and Ephraim was right to make a peace with you all when he did. But we still have our people to think of; They cannot know about any of this, so they would have no say in the decision, and I can't allow them to be put in harm's way without their permission or understanding."

"I completely understand," Carlisle assured the Chief, "You put your people first, and I know all too well that accidents do happen from time to time when my family, or any of my kind, are in close proximity with a large group of humans for any extended period of time. We will of course continue to respect your desire to keep us at a distance, for their safety."

The men continued to speak quietly amongst themselves, explaining to Charlie the history of the treaty, and discussing arrangements for everyone to stay in the Cullen home for the entirety of the weekend. They were all still reeling from Bella's confessed past, and all it implied, but they were making an effort to distract themselves from it for the moment so as to appear collected when Bella came back down.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Sue was showing Esme how to make a large potato salad, and all the women were busying themselves in an effort to calm down after the emotional morning they had all had.

"Do the boys really eat this much?" Esme asked, thoroughly surprised with the amount of food Sue and Emily had insisted they make, "You do remember obviously that my family won't be eating any of this, right?"

This earned a hearty laugh from Kim who snarkily responded, "I think there might be quite a few grumpy wolves in the house if yal decided to join us for lunch."

For a moment, Esme was worried she had offended the girl, or scared her, but once she realized Kim was laughing, eyebrows raised and a smile on her lips, she realized she was in fact being teased. She found she quite enjoyed the company of these young women, and was pleased that they seemed more comfortable with her now.

"Do you think Bella is going to be ok?" Emily finally asked, sobering the mood in the kitchen instantly.

Esme turned to the girl and, taking them both by surprise, pulled her in for a comforting hug, "She's strong Em," she assured her, still holding her close, "Bella's going to be just fine."

She released her then, and was pleased when she saw a grateful smile ghost her lips. Something told her these girls, and their pack, were going to be very important to her Bella, and the rest of their family.

"I just can't understand how nobody knew," Kim continued, "I get that she couldn't tell her father about any of the supernatural stuff, but he didn't even recognize their names. How could she have never mentioned her best friends, and how could her mother have never mentioned to Charlie what happened? Surely, even Renee would have noticed how upset she must have been, not to mention whatever injuries she had to have received the night the cats attacked her…"

"Bella's a very private person," Esme explained, "I doubt she ever said anything to anyone about this. That's probably why she was so emotional telling it today. She's been bottling it up for years."

"It's truly amazing she endured all of that as a child, and is still comfortable being surrounded by vampires and werewolves. I really hope she lets us in," Emily commented, looking hopeful, "I feel like she and I might be good friends someday."

With that, the women grabbed the food and made their way back into the living room where the wolves waiting hungrily, and as they entered, Carlisle brought the human men back into the room to eat as well.

There was still no sign of Bella or the Cullen children, but they were all content to let them take their time to themselves while they ate and got to know one another better.

Bella's pain and their growing love and protectiveness towards her brought them all onto even ground, and now, they could truly begin to tear down the generations worth of mistrust, and in its place build new friendships.

Friendships they would need in the coming years as their new future unfolded.

 **A/N: This is the final chapter of Twilight Reading Twilight Book 1: Dying to Know the Truth. I wasn't sure how to end it, but I was quickly approaching FF's limit for included quoted text from an original work in one story, and I wanted to make sure it was allowed to remain up on this site.**

 **HAVE NO FEAR! The Sequel: "TRT2-Rather Die Than Stay Away" and the Prequel: "Finding Her Way in the Big City" will be up very soon. I am thoroughly enjoying this series, and thanks to all of the amazing readers' responses over the last few months, I am very motivated to keep this story line rolling.**


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